Adventure on Forest Island
by BlackBarBooks
Summary: When Zoro gets himself and Sanji lost in a giant forest, they stumble into a bigger mess than they ever bargained for! With something in the forest out to get them, will they manage to find their way out before they drive eachother insane? ZoSan. Rated M to be safe.
1. Rare and Unusual

**Chapter 1 : Rare and unusual.**

* * *

It was one of those quiet days on the Sunny. The kind where the crew sat around and all did their own thing. Usopp was cooking up his Tabasco stars and talking enthusiastically to Franky about new adjustments to the ship's arsenal. Chopper and Luffy were listening intently, nodding enthusiastically to every suggestion with the word "beam" in it.

Nami was going over her maps in her usual recliner, next to Robin who read in the shade of her umbrella. Brook was playing his violin at the back of the ship, staring longingly at the miles of calm ocean behind them.

The crew's swordsman was reclining against the tree at the side of the stairs, the swing next to his shoulder barely moving in the breeze. Normally, Zoro would be asleep on a day like this, or at least pretending to be. Reclining back in the grass of the sunny, enjoying the sun on his face and listening to the life around him was better than any meditation when it came to inner peace.

His crewmates might be a strange and loud bunch that laughed even without a noticeable reason, but it was the feeling of belonging that stilled Zoro's heart the most.

Back before he joined Luffy on his quest to become the pirate king, he'd wandered from location to location, hunting bounties for money and often walking alone for days. Zoro looked back on that life with slight horror now, did this mean he was getting weak? Even as a child he'd preferred being alone, when did that change?

The swordsman's brow furrowed as he tapped the top of the glass bottle cautiously, letting a few drops of magnolia oil fall onto Kitetsu's blade cautiously with narrow intervals. He placed the bottle besides him and pulled up the cotton cloth, sliding it along the edge to clear away the polishing powder.

Zoro had been taught that sword maintenance should always be accompanied with meditation, a sharp blade is kept by a sharp mind. Zoning out and focusing solely on his sword maintenance, Zoro started his very own kind of meditation, filled with the soft background noise of his crewmates and-

"Oi- idiot Marimo!"

There goes that.

"What do you want, crap cook?" Zoro huffed without looking up. Despite the insults there was no actual bait in the cook's tone, it seemed like neither of them was in the mood for an argument. Zoro tilted his sword, watching Sanji's reflection in the blade. The blond was tapping his shoes into the grassy deck, frowning around his cigarette as he avoided looking at the swordsman.

Zoro smirked as he looked up. Sanji seemed strained, hands stiff in his pockets as he reluctantly looked at the swordsman. There was something similar to pain on the cook's face. Zoro leant back against the tree, allowing Kitetsu to rest on his knees. The cook needed a favor of some kind.

"You deaf curly? I asked what you wanted." Zoro mused, unable to keep his smirk from growing when the cook rubbed the back of his neck in frustration and sucked hard on his cigarette. There was a moment of silence while Sanji glared metaphorical daggers at Zoro's smug face.

"During the last Marine attack, all the magnolia bottles I had in the storage broke." Sanji tapped his foot uncomfortably as he glanced at the bottle of sword oil at Zoro's side. "It's been too long since I treated my knives. I don't feel comfortable without caring for them properly."

Zoro's smirk faded and his expression became lighter and more casual. Sanji seemed genuinely concerned about his knives and caring for blades was something the swordsman could understand. He nodded to the bottle. "I'm finishing up Kitetsu, the other two are left. I can bring you the bottle when I'm finished."

"That's going to take a shitty while." Sanji mumbled, glancing towards the kitchen. "I only have an hour or two off before I need to get started on dinner."

"After dinner then." Zoro shrugged, turning his attention back to his blade as he slid the cotton cloth firmly from the hilt to the tip in one long stroke. He watched Sanji's reflection in the blade curiously, the blond wasn't moving and he didn't look like he was breathing either.

Sanji followed the movements of his fingers for a few strokes, either looking deep in thought or like he wasn't thinking at all. Zoro would guess the latter.

"Cook?" Zoro's voice seemed to snap the blond out of his trance since the blond startled slightly and fumbled for the forgotten cigarette. Zoro could have sworn Sanji's ears were turning pink; did the cook have a fever?

Before Zoro managed to ask what was wrong with Sanji's stupid perverted head, the blond turned on his heel and stormed off to the kitchen. Zoro watched him go, confused as to why the blond was walking so stiffly and mumbling furiously under his breath.

Was the bastard angry that he had to wait for Zoro to lend him the oil? If he was, he was acting like a brat and Zoro was going to tease the hell out of him for having a hissy fit like that. The swordsman switched hands to turn the sword over, folding the cloth before he reached for the oil bottle.

Damn, his fingers had gotten all oily and slick. He'd have to wipe them off before he continued.

Less than 30 minutes later the cook returned, standing over Zoro who was applying polishing powder to Shusuui. Shadow fell over the swordsman when Sanji blocked his sunlight and Zoro glanced up to his crewmate questioningly.

Sanji was holding a leather roll up case, carefully wrapped and fastened under his arm as he flicked the ashes off his cigarette as far away from Zoro's sword as he could reach. The blond was a little awkward and chose staring out over the ocean over looking Zoro in the eyes.

"Those your knives?" Zoro gestured to the rolled up leather case with slight interest. He'd seen Sanji use his almost endless variations of knives while cooking, but never seen them all in the same place at the same time. He was slightly curious.

"Yeah, I already sharpened them, so I can't use them until I polish them." With that the cook sat down at an arm's length from the swordsman, shadow from the tree flickering strange jagged patterns onto his light blue shirt.

For a few seconds, Zoro watched the cook with slight amazement. He'd never thought the blond would willingly sit down on the ground next to him, but here he was; carefully unfolding the leather case with cautious practiced movements. Zoro's shoulders eased as he inspected the tattered and beat up roll, he'd never have imagined it belonging to Sanji if he'd seen it somewhere else.

The case opened and Zoro couldn't help but admire the knives. They were clearly worn and looked like they had been used constantly for a long time, despite that, the edges were well kept and razor sharp. Zoro knew enough about blades to tell that these were quality items.

Zoro reluctantly tore his eyes away from the selection of blades and reached for the bottle of magnolia oil, passing it to the cook who was pulling an especially worn knife from its home.

"The bottle is all slippery. You want me to drop it?" Sanji huffed softly, taking the bottle from Zoro's fingers gingerly and applying a couple of drops to his knife.

"Shut up, curly bastard." Zoro grumbled under his breath and got back to work on Shusuui. Zoro found strange comfort in hearing Sanji's breathing besides him, listening to the rhythm of both their cotton cloths slide along the polished steel. It reminded him of long nights of cleaning the Dojo's blades with Koshiro.

While Zoro finished Shusuui, Sanji managed to polish three of his larger knives and smoke two cigarettes. The silence was content and comfortable, like it usually was when neither of them was in the mood to argue. Shusuui's black edge slid into its scabbard smoothly, clicking softly when the hilt hit its home.

Sanji raised a knife with a slightly jagged edge, inspecting it's blade in the sunlight. Zoro had seen the cook use that knife for cutting bread on multiple occasions. Zoro had never used that knife himself of course. Those knives were for cooking only, no one on this ship had ever touched them.

"Those are well made." Zoro spoke without realizing he had, startling the cook visibly as the blond stared at him wide eyed. Zoro stared back, shocked that he himself had broken the comfortable silence. He almost regretted it, watching the uncomfortable shift in Sanji's posture.

"Yeah." Sanji's shoulders were still tense, but his lips eased into a slight smile. "The old man gave them to me." Zoro watched the cook slide his thumb along the side of the blade affectionately. "They're the real deal." Sanji's smile flashed into a grin for a second, before the blond got back to work.

Zoro reached for the Wado, sliding it out of its scabbard and raising it to the sunlight. He always saved Wado until the end of his cleaning sessions, he liked to take some extra time on this sword. The silence was still comfortable, but there was something hanging in the air now. Zoro could feel the unspoken words on his skin.

"That's also well made." Sanji gestured to the Wado as he lit himself another cigarette. "Didn't that Marine lady call it a- 'O Wasamono'?"

"Yeah. Wado Ichimonji is one of those 21 great swords." Zoro mused, dabbing the cherished blade with the cotton ball of polishing powder. "-but I knew she was great before that. It's that feeling, of a well forged blade." The silence returned, this time more than comfortable, it was enjoyable.

The wind rustled the trees and grass, blowing the smoke from Sanji's cigarette past Zoro's nose. The laughter and screams of the other crewmates seemed so distant, the sound of Brook's violin sailing past them on the wind. The cook looked so absorbed in his knives, treating them with the same care Zoro did for his swords.

"Can I see?" Zoro paused, placing the Wado down on his knees carefully and wiped the oil from his hands. Before he turned to the blond who was staring at him wide eyed. Zoro put out a hand questioningly, his face utterly serious as he waited for the angry ormocking comeback.

The cook glanced from Zoro's hand to his face, then to the knife he had just finished oiling and back to Zoro's hand. The swordsman could see the blond swallow thickly as he faked a casual shrug, passing the blade slowly to Zoro with a slightly twitching hand.

The knife felt weighty in his hand and heavy in a similar way the Wado felt heavy. Not physically, but burdened with something, the hopes of another person maybe? Zoro raised the knife to the sunlight, watching the rays reflect off the perfectly straight blade. The oiling was expertly done, easily as good as his own.

Sanji's eyes followed Zoro's movements cautiously, his hands twitching every time Zoro ran a finger along the spine of the blade. Zoro hummed softly from the back of his throat as he examined the knife. He wasn't surprised that Sanji was tense. He couldn't remember seeing anyone but Sanji handle these knives.

"You take good care of them." Zoro noted, passing the knife back to its owner. Sanji huffed slightly as he took the knife back, examining it to see if Zoro's fingerprints were somewhere on the blade. Zoro rolled his eyes, he had probably been taking care of blades for longer than Sanji had, he knew better than to leave fingerprints on the finish.

"Of course I do moss-brain." Sanji's expression was a little more somber than Zoro expected as the cook seemed satisfied and placed the knife back in its slot. "A cook's knife is his soul. You should understand, that sword is your treasure, right?" The cook pulled out another knife as he spoke.

"It is." Zoro raised the Wado again, reaching out for the magnolia bottle resting at Sanji's hip. Suddenly, the blond slapped his hand away and Zoro jerked his hand back in shock, growling as he glared up at his crewmate. "I need the bottle you bastard, hand it over."

Sanji was huffing indignantly, pink around the ears. "Keep your damn oil coated grubby hands off my suit Marimo." Sanji spat out as he passed the bottle, his ears reddening slightly and the corners of his mouth sinking into a frown. Zoro took the bottle and arched a brow; the blond was acting weird today.

"That sword belonged to someone you loved?" Sanji asked softly, almost like he wasn't asking Zoro directly. The blond didn't even glance his way when the swordsman's brow furrowed in slight confusion.

"It did. Before she died." Zoro grit his teeth at the memory, staring into the Wado's edge, running the cloth along it slowly. When the cloth drew away, Zoro could see the cook looking at him in the reflection. "We both made a promise to become the best, this sword is the only witness." Zoro turned to look at the blond, who was staring at the sword. "It has both our dreams in it."

There was a long silence as Sanji rolled the cigarette filter along his lips. Zoro returned to cleaning his sword, watching the cook in the reflection as the blond turned to look at his knives again.

"Then these knives are sort of the same." Sanji slid the knife into its pocket, smiling softly to himself. "It has both my and the old man's dreams in it."

"The old man believed in it too?" Zoro slid the Wado into its scabbard, enjoying the way the blade soundlessly slid inside. "The All Blue?"

"It's real." Sanji grumbled, his tone slightly bitter. "No matter what everyone else says, I know it's real." The cook's posture stiffened and he slid the oiled cloth along the final knife. It was very small and slightly curved, probably used for something fruit related.

"I'm not doubting it you idiot. We've seen plenty of things more incredible than that on the Grand Line right?" Zoro rolled his eyes, cracking his neck and yawning. "Sometimes I think that the one on this ship who doubts it the most is you."

"ZORO!" Luffy ran towards them screaming, throwing himself onto Zoro's shoulders and laughing loudly into the older man's ear. "Let's wrestle!" Chopper followed behind the captain, clutching onto Zoro's leg and shrieking in joy.

"Wrestle? No way-" Zoro grumbled, trying to pull Luffy off his back without luck. "Let me go Luffy, I don't have time to be playing around-"

"ZORO! I want to wrestle too!" Chopper laughed merrily, yanking on the hem of Zoro's haramaki with little hooves, his round dark eyes sparkling with joy and adoration. They were so large and glistening Zoro could practically see his own resolve shattering in their reflection. The swordsman groaned, rubbing his temples in frustration.

"SANJI! You wrestle too!" Luffy demanded, but the blond jumped to his feet and scooped up his knife set. He was slightly pale, probably from the very idea of being forced into some sort of childish rough housing in his favorite shirt.

"There is no way I'm going to play around in the grass like a shitty brat!" Sanji huffed, tying up his knife set and handing Zoro the bottle of oil. Luffy started whining childishly, reaching out for the blond who took a step back out of Luffy's rapidly growing reach. "I need to get dinner started anyway."

"DINNER!" Luffy jumped off Zoro's shoulders, drooling as he stared at Sanji with excited wide eyes. "I want to eat meat!"

"Then let me get to work you shitty-rubber." The cook frowned, lighting a cigarette and blowing the smoke out his nostrils with a roll of his eyes. "You brats better get to fishing later! You've eaten almost all the meat and Nami-swan says it's still two days until the next island!"

* * *

Two days later, just as Nami had said, the sunny was docked at a large island. The entire island was covered in a thick and large forest; trees of all shapes and sizes stretching out as far as the eye could see. There were high hills but no mountains, so the trees rose up against the sky like a tidal wave from the peak of the hills.

According to a man at the docks, there was only one village on the entire island, right there in the clearing of the bay. The island was a trade center right in between three larger islands, making it an ideal place to shop. They also sold delightful little sand-globes for only 20 berry, but as a great service just today, they could have one for 15 berry.

"Everybody, gather around!" Nami yelled out, standing on the platform surrounding the mast and raising her hand for attention. "I'm going to give you your allowance!"

Zoro frowned as he joined the others, hand resting on his swords as he took his place around the back of the group. Robin was smiling into her book from the back of the deck, clearly already received her share of allowance. Franky sat beside her, hammering something together a wide grin. Clearly Franky had decided to stay on boat duty.

Usopp and Chopper got their share, walking off to town while excitedly talking about herbs and spices like some sort of fanatics.

"Luffy, you still owe me for destroying my coat back on Drum Island, so this is what you get." The navigator and self-made treasurer handed Luffy his share of cash, causing the captain to whine at the amount.

"Shut up already!" Nami argued, with one hand on her hip and another one yanking at Luffy's stretchy cheek. "You're just going to spend it on meat or something stupid like a statue or a sand-globe anyway!" Luffy shut up, frowning comically as he ran out to join Usopp and Chopper and flailing his hands, yelling out something about great services on sand-globes only today.

Zoro knew what Nami would say before she even said it. It was the same every time. She waved his allowance in front of him and he frowned as she peeled two thirds of the bills out and stuffed them down her cleavage.

"This is for the interest on my loan." She winked cutely at Zoro, who in turn rolled his eyes in annoyance and snatched the remaining cash out of her money-hungry paws. He should be glad he got ANY money and he knew arguing would only earn him the same speech Luffy got. He was only planning on buying alcohol with that money anyway.

Before the crappy cook could force him to accompany him food shopping to drag the cart like a damn mule, Zoro jumped off the side of the ship, heading to town without looking over his shoulder. The cook had been insisting he'd help him go food shopping for the last few months, and today he just wanted a drink and a long nap on solid land.

The town had a few nice bars, one with decent alcohol for a modest price. Zoro bought a couple of bottles, popping the cork on one as he tucked the second into his haramaki. He walked around the town, enjoying the sights and sounds of the market while keeping an eye out for the cook. To avoid him of course, he didn't want to see him or anything like that. Nope.

Somehow, the streets snaked around and lead Zoro through several identical market squares, he'd passed a few suspiciously similar stalls three times now and each of the strange triplets had started to give him a confused look as he passed.

He was halfway through his first bottle as he passed a woman selling flowers, just like her twin sister, when an old man carrying a large wooden box on his back collapsed and fell over. The contents of the box spilled out when the box flew open at the impact with the street.

Books. Dozens of books of all shapes and sizes, various titles and yellowed pages littering the pavement of the market. The old man groaned in pain, reaching out desperately to yank a book out of the way of a passing cart of melons.

"Oi, old man." Zoro walked over to the grey haired old man, crouching next to him help him to his feet with a gentle pull at his arm. "Are you alright?" Zoro watched as the old man gave himself a thorough pat down, testing all joints and fingers before he gave Zoro a soft grin.

"I'm fine young man, it takes more than that to break these old bones!" The old man began collecting the books into his arms, carefully and cautiously stuffing them back into the makeshift shelves inside the box. It was a little like a portable bookshelf.

Zoro assisted, carefully picking up the books and piling them into the old man's arms to prevent the stranger from stressing his creaking back. The old man thanked him each time, lovingly arranging the books into their designated places until Zoro handed him the last one.

"Thank you for your help." The old man gave him a warm grin, and Zoro couldn't stop his own lopsided one from growing on his lips.

"No problem gramps." Zoro patted the strange portable bookshelf, watching the old man attempt to slip on the strange shoulder straps that made it seem more like a giant wooden backpack. "Where are you taking that mini library?" Zoro mused, sipping from the bottle as the old man struggled to regain his balance after shouldering the books.

"I'm taking these to the harbor, I'm moving to the next island over to be with my family. After my son left home, an old man like me can't be expected to live alone forever!" The old man huffed, wobbling slightly from the weight. "These books are my treasure, I collected them on my adventures on the Grand Line." The old man had this serene expression, like someone who had lived out all his ambitions.

"You'll never get to the harbor before the ship leaves like this." Zoro pointed out, remembering how many hours of walking he'd done to get to this market. "I'll carry them for you." With a single yank, the old man's arms were free from the restraints and Zoro shouldered the heavy load with ease.

"C-Careful!" The old man waved his hands frantically, concern written on his face until he realized there was no way Zoro was going to put the bookcase down. "Alright, if you think you have the time. Damn youngsters, never asking permission anymore!"

The old man must have known about a shortcut, because it only took about 20 minutes to get to the harbor from the market. Witchcraft probably. They didn't have to take more than two turns. Zoro made sure not to drop the box harshly when he placed it down on the harbor in front of a ship a little larger than the sunny.

"Thank you." The old man smiled, looking up at the ship in front of them with a peaceful look in his eyes that reminded Zoro much of Koshiro, his teacher and surrogate father. The look of an accomplished man, who had lived his dream.

"Don't mention it old man." Zoro grinned awkwardly, finishing off his first bottle and wiping the alcohol of his lips with a thumb. Why did he always end up carrying heavy things when he left the ship?

"I want to give you something for your help." The old man opened the bookshelf, pulling Zoro down by the lapels of his shirt and gesturing to the piles of books concealed inside. "Pick any book you want."

"I don't need a book old man, you don't have to give me anything." Zoro shook his head, earrings clattering softly as he attempted to loosen the old man's grip on his shirt. "These books are your treasure, right? I can't take one."

Clearly appalled by Zoro's good manners, the old man swiped the empty bottle from Zoro's hand and hit him in the head with it. "You better pick one! Young'ins today don't know the power of the written word anymore!" The old man huffed indignantly, shaking the bottle threateningly. "These books are all one of a kind, some of them ancient and priceless! You're lucky I'm going to give you one!"

Pulling away from the old man in fear of another strike of bottle to the head, Zoro frowned. Judging from the crazy old man's expression and the way the bottle wavered back and forth above them, he wasn't going to get away without taking one of those old books.

Maybe Robin could use one of them? She was a historian after all, she might be delighted to get one of those old books. If he picked something she would like, she might even be thankful enough to persuade Nami into shaving off some of Zoro's debt. Nami did listen to Robin after all.

"Alright old man, what do you have in there?" Zoro gave in, leaning into the bookcase to read the worn labels he'd caught a glimpse of before. The books were of all shapes and sizes, multiple faded colors and most of them smelled vaguely of the ocean.

"I have books and journals from around the entire Grand Line, even a few from the New World." The old man announced proudly, letting go of Zoro's shirt and pointing at a few of the thicker books. "I had to steal some of these from the World Government's annual book burnings." The old man said with a hushed tone, covering his mouth and glancing suspiciously from side to side.

"Oh, so you're a criminal?" Zoro laughed, running his fingers over the spines of the books until he suddenly stopped. There was something there, his intuition was rarely wrong. There was a heavy feeling creeping up his finger. Something restless that settled in his guts.

The book he'd stopped at was one of the thinner books, colored faded blue and the title was washed and barely readable. He plucked the book from the shelf, opening it and flipping the worn yellow pages with his thumb. It was less than 200 pages long, handwritten and the ink was smudged on the occasional spots. Zoro opened the book at the first page, peering down to read the fancy handwriting on the slightly torn and smudged front page.

"Journal of Captain Belion." Zoro read out loud, only to have the old man poke him in the head with an annoyed finger.

"It's Belon!" The old man huffed, looking at the book over Zoro's shoulder. "He was an early explorer, sailed around the Grand Line before he died." The old man sighed slightly, running a finger over the name. "He was from the South blue and friends with Mountblank Noland. He died from a strange disease he contracted on his travels and died a year before his friend did. He wrote all about it in this book, no one believed him, so he died a liar."

Zoro's interest now fully raised he flipped through the pages eagerly. "What did he supposedly lie about?"

"You might have heard about it, many people have. Even before Belon started telling people about it." The old man smiled, flipping through the yellowed pages, until he opened it at the second half. "He said he found the legendary ocean."

Zoro stared, his eyes widening when he stared at the two words written in large letters at the top of the worn page. "All Blue." Excitement tingled through Zoro's body, he kept staring at the words, unable to bring himself to read anything else for a few minutes.

"D-did he write where it was?" Zoro asked a little hesitantly, his grip on the book tightening. "Did he say where? Around what island?"

The old man stared at Zoro in bewilderment. "No. He was dying at the time so he doesn't mention the location, only describes it in great detail." The old man didn't take his eyes off Zoro as he spoke, withdrawing his hands. "Somewhere on the Grand Line is all he mentions."

Zoro closed the book, unable to stop the grin widening on his face as he stood up. "Thanks old man, I'm taking this one."

"Do you believe it exists?" The old man asked with an extremely serious tone, his thin hand clutching onto Zoro's wrist like a vice. "That book is my treasure, I need to know you believe in it."

"I think it exists." Zoro said softly and the old man slowly let go of his hand. "-and so does the one who will be keeping this book." With a simple wave to the old man, Zoro set off, heading towards the Thousand Sunny that was docked at the other side of the bay.

Naturally Zoro couldn't simply walk up to the cook and hand him the book saying 'I found this. It's about the All blue.' The idea alone was horribly awkward. No, it would be better to place it on the Sunny's counter or on the bastard's pillow or something. That way he wouldn't have to look him in the eyes when he handed the thing over.

Zoro groaned at the idea, he'd never been able to look at the damn cook when he spoke about his dream. Every time Sanji began talking about the All Blue, his face lit up his voice got soft and overly intimate. It was a little like having a perfect view of Sanji's soul and the exposure of it made Zoro uncomfortably warm. The damn blond just always looked so happy.

There was also the chance that the cook got angry at seeing it. Zoro didn't want him to think he was mocking his dream or anything. He didn't know how the cook felt about it. Zoro himself had a dream that was quite tangible, something real and no matter how difficult it was, it was possible and **there**.

Sanji's dream was something a little less substantial. Even if Zoro was certain that the All Blue existed, he could imagine not having even remote proof that what he was aiming for was real or not could get tiresome. He himself had the scar to prove that Mihawk was real and out there. He'd like to see someone try to disprove Mihawk's existence to his face.

Damn, how did the Sunny get this far away? It was closer a few minutes ago. Hadn't he seen this house before? It had a very familiar looking old lady watering those one of a kind heart-shaped trimmed bushes. Was this town maybe full of strange twins and triplets?

The second bottle of alcohol was calling him so Zoro paused his walking for a moment to pluck the bottle from his haramaki open it. The book resting between his thumb and index finger as he yanked the stubborn cork from the mouth of the bottle with a satisfying 'pop'.

As soon as the cork gave in and flew out into Zoro's hand, a dark figure appeared besides him, jumping over a pile of boxes and snatching the book right from Zoro's outstretched hand. For a second, both men made eye contact and the world slowed down. Zoro reached out for the thief's cape and clutched at it with a terrifying roar, but the fabric slipped from between his fingers and the thief screamed out in fear.

Without a second thought, Zoro started running, tossing the bottle away as he sprinted after the thief, jumping over boxes, carts and people that the terrified snatcher threw into his path. The streets were winding and narrow, twisting and turning through markets full of people who insisted on being in Zoro's way.

A few women screamed in horror as Zoro ran past them, others threw themselves out of his path and cursed their luck when their carts and barrels were tipped over. "Z-ZORO!?" The shrill tone of Usopp's voice barely reached Zoro's ears through the cacophony of screams around him.

"OI! MARIMO!" Sanji's voice was much closer than Usopp's and the swordsman spared a single glance over his shoulder when he felt soft fingertips on his forearm for a second. The cook was a few steps behind him, eyes wide with anger and hair tousled from the speed they were running at. "WHERE ARE YOU GOING!? YOU'RE HEADING FOR THE FOREST YOU IDIOT!"

Zoro snarled, yanking his arm out of reach as he doubled his pace, refusing to take his eyes off the caped man in front of him. "THIS DOESN'T CONCERN YOU CURLY-BROW. STOP FOLLOWING ME."

"NO WAY!" Sanji shouted through the crowd and jumped a massive cart of pumpkins with ease, catching up right behind Zoro and fumbling for the haramaki. "YOU'RE GOING TO GET YOUR MOSSY ASS LOST AND WE'LL NEVER FIND YOU!"

"I'M NOT GOING TO GET LOST!"

Both Strawhats slipped slightly when they left the paved path of the village and entered the small meadow dividing the village from the forest. The thief disappeared in between the large trees, kicking up soft dirt and bending branches, running for his life through the thick foliage.

Zoro sliced up branches that got in his way as he ran, causing the thief to shriek in horror and attempt to lose them by sliding down a hill. The man frantically scrambled to his feet and almost tripped over his own feet when Zoro ran down the steep hill after him, one sword in his mouth and two held out straight from his sides, cutting through various bushes like butter as he ran.

"ZORO! STOP! YOU'RE GOING TO GET US -BOTH- LOST!"

The thief's luck ran out before Zoro's and the caped man ran into a dead end, an almost perfectly vertical precipice with nothing but trees and bushes below. The thief realized his time was up as Zoro approached him slowly with his swords drawn, cautiously like a stalking predator.

"Hand it over." Zoro hissed around his sword, arms slightly lowered as he realized that his prey had nowhere to run. "-and I'll let you walk away you bastard."

Maybe it was the venom in his tone or just the aura of pure bloodlust, but the thief didn't seem to put much faith into his promise. Glancing from Zoro's angry expression to the crumbling cliff face behind him. In a fit of desperation, the thief inhaled sharply, jumping off the cliff and running down the almost vertical drop until he lost his balance and rolled comically down the last few feet until he hit a tree.

Zoro sighed, looking at the groaning man below struggle to free himself of his tangled cape, struggling to get to his feet. "Stupid bastard-" Zoro seethed his swords, getting ready to jump down to retrieve the offender, when a flying kick whizzed through the air in a modest attempt to kick off his head.

"THAT'S MY LINE!" Sanji howled as Zoro blocked the kick with his forearm. "YOU GOT US ASS BACKWARDS LOST YOU IDIOT!"

"I NEVER ASKED YOU TO FOLLOW ME!" Zoro spat back, taking a step back and glancing over his shoulder to watch the thief dizzily make his way into the forest below. He didn't have time for this. He pushed Sanji back, turning to the cliff and getting ready to get his book back, when the blond ran into his path and raised his leg menacingly.

"I'm not going to let you get us any more lost than you already have you moss-brained bastard." Sanji huffed, his curled brow lowered in anger and his voice rougher than usually. It was at moments like this Zoro felt uncomfortably drawn to the blond, he did look his best when he was angry.

"That bastard stole something important, I'm going to get it back." Zoro's hand was resting on his swords now and he could hear the rustle in the bushes from below. "Get out of my way you bastard."

The cook huffed, lighting himself a cigarette without lowering his leg. "Wait here you directionless idiot. I'll go get whatever it is he stole for you and come back."

"I can do it myself you bastard!" Zoro attempted to take a step forward, but the sole of Sanji's shoe brushed against his nose, and the blond pocketed his lighter and took a long drag of his cigarette.

"No." Sanji gave Zoro a determined look that Zoro was rarely treated to outside of battle. "You. stay. RIGHT. Here. I'll go get your stolen shit. That's the plan."

Zoro grumbled, there was no way he was going to get lost, but the blond had a look of finality to him; the kind that threatened his access to the Sunny's alcohol supply. He grit his teeth, he didn't want the blond to realize what the book was about, but the thief was getting further away with each second and it didn't look like Sanji was going to let him pass any time soon. Unless he was willing to risk the thief getting away; this was the only option.

"Fine." Zoro grumbled, sitting down by a tree. "Then get going curly, if you get lost, I'm not going to go looking for you."

"I never want to be told that by YOU again." Sanji huffed, grinning around his cigarette as he jumped down the cliff to follow the thief and unbeknownst to him retrieve his gift. Zoro watched the last of the blond disappear over the edge of the cliff and reclined against the rough bark as he started his wait.

The forest was quiet and seemed to stretch on forever, reaching up to the horizon as Zoro looked over the carpet of leaves in front of him. The skies were growing darker and there was something nagging at the back of his head. He had a bad feeling, an uncomfortable weight on his mind that wouldn't go away.

This forest was bad news.

* * *

A new adventure! YAY! This one is going to be a little lighter and a bit shorter while I work on another big and heavy piece.

I hope you'll join me for the ride!

-BBB

_Edit: I'm looking for a beta for this story, someone with good grammar, punctuation and lots of patience!_


	2. Priorities

**Chapter 2 - Priorities**

* * *

Zoro wasn't sure how long he had been sitting by that tree, possibly 15 minutes at most. It felt like a lot longer.

He was on edge, tension aching in his limbs. Zoro knew the cook was more than capable of taking care of himself; he'd never had to worry much about the idiot in battle. Despite that, he still found himself staring at the clearing where the blond had entered the forest below.

The sky was darkening above him, red and orange tinting the thinner foliage at the top of the trees. The forest was unnaturally quiet, the occasional chirp of birds and rustle of leaves almost grating on Zoro's senses as he listened intently. He anticipated the blond to come out of the forest any minute now. He wasn't sure if he was expecting Sanji to be smiling or frowning.

The swordsman sighed and leaned his head back against the tree behind him. His grip on the Wado tightened as he stared up into the branches above him.

The burning orange sky flickered through small jagged holes in the blanket of leaves. Of course Sanji was going to take a look at the book when he retrieved it. The blond was curious and way too prone to sticking his stupid nose into Zoro's business.

Zoro sighed as he closed his eyes. Would Sanji be angry that Zoro had assumed he wanted proof? Living without proof for so long might have made the blond bitter; Zoro hadn't meant the book to be an insult. He shook his head, clearing his mind of all these negative thoughts. Damn, all this silence was starting to get annoying. He couldn't even nap.

The breeze rustled the leaves above him, clattering his earrings as Zoro tried to relax a little. He would have heard any danger coming in all this silence. But the damage was done if Sanji didn't like the book. If the blond hated it, he could just say it was for Robin and he hadn't known what it was about.

He wouldn't even be lying. He knew the book had a couple of pages about the All Blue in it, but he didn't know what else was concealed in those pages. He hadn't even glanced over the All Blue part himself, how did that Captain Belon even describe it? Zoro tensed up, cursing himself for not looking the book over himself.

What if the cook didn't find the book? What if the thief threw it away and Sanji couldn't find it? The idea alone stung. If he'd read the All Blue description, he might have been able to come clean about what the book was and describe it to the cook. Describe some of it, at least.

Zoro kept his eyes closed and tried to imagine it; a clear blue ocean, rippling with life and glittering like a carpet of jewels in the sun. Maybe there was an endless variation of spices and fruit, growing on the banks of some strange island located in that legendary ocean?

The idea was wonderful; Zoro could barely wait to taste all the different things the cook could make with all those ingredients and bizarre fish. The swordsman grinned. Luffy was going to eat until he capsized the Sunny.

It would be a blast to catch all those fish too. They could throw out a net, or maybe Usopp could make everyone a fishing pole. Sanji would probably want to swim in it. He'd be yanking off his dress shoes and shirt and throwing himself overboard with that beaming smile on his face.

Warmth spread through Zoro's body when he pictured it: the cook's blond head surfacing, decorated by a giant grin and a soggy cigarette. Curled brow arched in joy when he waved them from the ocean below with his hair sticking to his face like an idiot. Zoro wouldn't be able to resist jumping overboard either. Swimming in the All Blue with Sanji sounded like too much fun. The devil fruit users were missing out.

Suddenly a loud, high-pitched scream tore through the silence of the forest, ripping apart his daydreams and startling Zoro into alertness with a jolt.

He stared at the clearing where Sanji disappeared, his heart hammering in his chest, wildly, when nothing moved around it.

That scream had been too masculine to be a woman, but too high-pitched to have been Sanji. It couldn't have been the cook, the cook didn't shriek. Especially when he knew Zoro could hear him.

On instinct, Zoro began running. His feet carrying him into the clearing where Sanji disappeared and down a branching path.

He had no idea where he was going. Branches pulled at his clothes and adrenaline pumped through his veins. He could hear slight rustles, crunching of leaves and broken branches a little further onwards.

He could also hear breathing; soft, controlled breathing coming from the clearing before him. Zoro saw a flash of gold in between branches and the familiar smell of tobacco lingered in the air before him. His nerves settled slightly, blood rushing inthrough his head.

"COOK!" Zoro burst in through the branches, into the clearing and paused right before Sanji's fancy dress shoes crushed his jugular. Sanji had whipped around, his expression deadly and determined, and the long leg was hovering less than a toe-length away from Zoro's adam's apple.

The blonde's face eased slightly when he recognized him, but he didn't lower his leg. Zoro waited, hand resting on his sword as he watched the other man's expression carefully.

It was the same strange expression the blond had had when he ran off, so why did it still give him that strange warm feeling in his chest?

"I thought I told you to stay, Marimo!" Sanji hissed, finally lowering his leg and flicking the ashes off his cigarette, "Don't tell me you sleepwalked here."

Zoro huffed, crossing his arms over his chest and grinning toat the cook. "I thought I heard a woman shriek. So I thought you'd had your ass kicked."

"THAT WASN'T ME, YOU BASTARD!" Sanji half shrieked and took a few large steps towards the swordsman, invading his personal space and glaring at him in a way that made Zoro's gut tighten. "And even if it WAS me, I wouldn't need help from a moss-brain!" The blond yanked the cigarette out of his mouth, getting much closer than usually.

Zoro didn't move, staring the blond in the one visible eye as they had their glaring contest.

"So who was it then? The thief?" Zoro arched a brow, feeling Sanji's smoky breath linger on his lips before the blond pulled away with a groan.

The heat must have been getting to the blond, since his ears were reddening slightly and the cook shook a little as he brought the cigarette back to his lips.

"Maybe. I didn't manage to catch up withto him before that scream, so it could be that we lost his trail." Sanji looked away while he said that, and Zoro could feelfelt his heart sink a little at the words.

It was gone then? The book was lost?

Now he'd never get to know if the cook would liked it or not. Or get to ask the bastard how that Belon guy described the All Blue. Maybe it was for the best, not knowing was half of the adventure after all. Still… the book had been the old man's treasure. Losing it like this was shameful.

"Don't make that face, bastard Marimo."

Zoro tore himself from his thoughts, looking up at the blond who was standing across the clearing. His expression was peculiar, a little pained and still soft.

Was the cook pitying him? No, it wasn't pity. Was it guilt? The blond was clearly upset, but why did he look like Zoro was tearing out his heart?

"What face?" Zoro challenged, still trying to figure out the meaning behind Sanji's strange, husky tone of voice.

"The mossy-idiot face" Sanji once again avoided eye contact, instead staring out into the forest before them. "Let's look for your stupid crap a little more; the scream came from somewhere around here. If we're lucky, the thief broke his leg or something."

Sanji walked into the forest, hands in his pockets and his lips puckered tightly around the cigarette. Zoro followed, looking the blonde's stiff posture over as he easily caught up in a few large strides. Sanji was feeling guilty, probably for losing the thief, and consequently, something Zoro had cared about.

Zoro grimaced a little. How would the blond react when he found out that they were going through all this trouble, getting themselves even deeper into the forest, for a gift Zoro intended for him?

What if the cook didn't even like the book, he'd probably try to kick off Zoro's head and scream at him. 'You got us into this mess over a shitty book like that?!' or something.

"Zoro?" Sanji was looking at him, his one visible eye still holding that guilty look that Zoro didn't understand completely. The swordsman shook his head, taking his position beside the cook and keeping up with his pace.

"I was just thinking." Zoro mumbled, glancing at the darkening skies above them. There was only a hint of sunlight left at the edge of the obscured horizon.

"Must be hard with a moss-brain like yours." Sanji teased, crushing his cigarette against the top of the packet.

"At least my brain doesn't shut off around women" Zoro spat back, grinning to the blond who grinned back. They kept walking in comfortable silence, both listening for any sounds and looking for any trail the thief might have left.

"Hey, Zoro?" Sanji asked low, almost like he was hoping Zoro didn't hear him. Zoro looked at the cook, noting how he wasn't looking at him again, staring into the opposite direction instead. Zoro made a mental note of mentioning this to Chopper when they got back.

"What?" The forest was extremely silent and Zoro could swear he couldn't even hear Sanji breathing. Was the blond getting sick?

"Were you in love with her?" Sanji turned to look at him, eyes dark and cold as he gestured to the white sword at Zoro's hip. "The previous owner of that sword?"

Zoro jerked slightly at the question, running his thumb subconsciously along the hilt of the Wado. He contemplated the answer for a few seconds, heat pooling in his face as he wondered how much he should tell the cook. Sanji's expression was serious and intense. Was the damn cook going to give him shit for fighting a girl 2,001 times as a kid?

"Maybe." Zoro groused, looking down at the Wado as he spoke. "We were kids; she was my rival. I didn't think about anything other than her and getting stronger back then." Zoro felt the ache come back: the familiar ache of regret. "When we spent time together, we only fought. We rarely did anything else."

Zoro looked up at the cook, who still looked like he was holding his breath, forgotten cigarette dangling on his lips. He pulled Wado from its home, the last rays of the setting sun reflecting in it as he thought.

"Yeah. I think I loved her. As much as a kid was capable of at least." With that, Zoro sheathed his sword, and glanced back to Sanji who was looking at him in a strange way. His eyes were slightly widened and a small smile was curling at the corners of his mouth. Zoro's stomach twisted uncomfortably from the look.

"Let's go find that thief, Marimo. We don't have time to chit-chat." Sanji tossed his head towards a few broken branches to the side. "Don't get lost."

"I don't get lost!" Zoro huffed, the serious mood gone and the tight feeling in his gut unwinding a little.

The cook was walking a little faster now, requiring slight effort on Zoro's part to keep up with him, as his long legs seemed to bounce him forward. The silence was comfortable, but there was something about the cook's gentle humming that kept breaking Zoro's concentration.

The swordsman's mind was in overdrive, trying to make sense of Sanji's behavior. The cook was suddenly much lighter in his step, that strange, weird-ass smile lingering on his lips as they walked.

A few times Zoro glanced at the blond, only to catch the other man's face turn away from him, his golden hair flying sideways at the sudden movement and there was that weird reddish color at the tip of Sanji's ears again.

Zoro knew that the odds of finding the book were slim-to-none now that they had completely lost the trail. He still wanted to try, they had the time and since they had come this far into the forest, they didn't have much to lose. It definitely didn't have anything to do with him enjoying Sanji's company. Not at all.

It would also give him some time to figure out why the cook was acting so strange. Just to make sure the blond was up for the next battle. The cook was usually less annoying when he wasn't fluttering around some female, but he was still annoying. The silence was shattered by a low, demanding grumble and Zoro glanced down to his haramaki.

He was hungry; he hadn't been hungry for weeks, the cook always made sure to feed them regularly or give them something to eat on the go. He glanced up at the blond, who was staring at him with a mixture of annoyance and anger. Zoro winced at the look; he could kiss his alcohol supply goodbye.

"You only bought alcohol with your money today?" Sanji accused, teeth grit in anger as he crushed the remnants of his cigarette threateningly underfoot. "You haven't eaten a single thing since breakfast then?"

Zoro grimaced, feeling overly conscious about his still rumbling stomach. "I wasn't hungry at the time." Zoro rationalized. "I was planning on coming back to the Sunny for dinner anyway."

"Zoro, LUNCH." Sanji hissed, rummaging through his suit pockets angrily for his cigarettes. "If you weren't planning on buying anything in town, I would have made you a packed lunch! I made some for Franky and Robin-swan!" Sanji pointed his unlit cigarette at the swordsman, who rolled his eyes and started walking again, passing the blond without a single glance.

"It's not a big deal cook. If I had been hungry, I would have bought something. I wasn't, so I didn't." Zoro listened to Sanji's angry footsteps resume, catching up to him in large angry strides. He could picture the expression the blond was wearing right now.

"I'm not letting you go first! You'll get us even more lost than we already are! Nami-swan is going to have to spend her precious money to feed that shitty-rubber!" Sanji lamented, stopping by a tree while he searched for his lighter. "The bastard better not upset her!"

The swordsman sighed, it was very unlikely Nami was going to feed Luffy with her own money. She'd probably force Usopp to cook something. He wasn't about to point this out to the cook, seeing as how the blond was babbling something about the unfairness of the world behind him. Instead he ignored the blond, walking into a shady clearing.

In the center of the clearing, back in the shade so it was almost impossible to make out, was a dark blob of some kind. Zoro narrowed his eyes, staring at the crumpled heap in the grass. Was it the thief? It was not big enough to be a whole person, but it wasn't moving either. Had the thief been killed?

"What are you looking at, Marimo?" Sanji joined him, stretching his neck to look over his shoulder and directly at the heap. "Is it the thief? Is he dead?"

Zoro drew out Wado, slowly making his way to the shadow on the ground. Maybe the book was in there, or maybe it was the mangled remains of the thief. The bad feeling Zoro had before returned, his nerves were strung tight. The swordsman glared down at the tattered fabric as he flicked the object over with the tip of his sword, preparing for the worst.

"Is your stolen shit in there?" Sanji asked from the edge of the clearing, flicking the lid of his lighter open with a loud click before closing it again. "If it is: grab it, and let's get something to eat."

Nothing happened and Zoro sheathed his sword, crouching down to pull up the fabric. Something wasn't right.

"It's not here." Zoro grumbled and raised the cloak to shake it thoroughly, still clinging to the hope that the book was concealed somewhere between the folds of the cape. "The bastard must have discarded his cloak because it was getting snagged on branches or something-"

"ZO-!" Sanji's sudden yelp was cut short by a thump.

Zoro turned around instantly, Wado drawn again as he glanced around the clearing for the cook. The blond was gone. Completely gone.

"OI! COOK!" Zoro called out, a chill creeping up his spine as nothing greeted him but the complete silence of the forest. Not even the grass rustled, leaving Zoro with nothing but the sound of his own breathing and thumping heartbeat in his chest.

"COOK!" Zoro yelled out louder, walking to where the cook had been standing moments ago. The scent of Sanji's shampoo and cigarettes still lingered in the air. There were no obvious signs of a struggle here and not even the cook was capable of getting lost this fast while standing still.

Something must have gotten the jump on him, right there behind Zoro, close enough for him to watch the blonde's back if only he'd been paying attention.

Zoro's grip on Wado tightened; if something managed to grab the cook AND silence him it must have been strong. Glancing around frantically for a clue, ANY clue to what happened, a small glimmer caught Zoro's eye.

It was Sanji's lighter, lying out in the open on the muddy ground. Zoro crouched down, picking it up with his free hand and dusting it off gently with his thumb. It was golden and intricate, covered in swirly patters and lines. Zoro rubbed the dirt from one of the larger grooves, investigating the ground thoroughly for more clues.

There was clearly something here. Sanji's cigarette was still burning on the ground, half covered in dirt and barely halfway burned out. Zoro stubbed it out, narrowing his eyes as he noticed strange ridges in the dirt.

Claw marks?

Zoro's eyes narrowed slightly when he counted ten relatively deep engravings ( valleys was used incorrectly here) in the dirt, each one the size of a thin finger. His heartbeat drumming in his ears, the swordsman followed the trail for three steps, before it disappeared into a mound of dirt and rocks.

A secret door?

It only took one good yank to rip open the strange organic lid on the large hole and Zoro recoiled slightly when he was greeted by a stench of rotting plants and…

Something else. He brandished all three of his swords before he jumped into the large tunnel that snaked under the surface.

There was only one possible way to go, so Zoro started running through the pitch black of the hole, letting his intuition lead him more than his sense of direction. He could feel the presence of the dirt around him and smell the horrible stench of some dead animal as he passed it.

The tunnel was silent, but not the same dead silence as the forest. There was something alive here… Something big, and dangerous.

Zoro picked up speed, making his way down a narrow path when something attempted to yank Kitetsu out of his grip. Reclaiming the sword from whatever had caught it, the swordsman had to stop running, backing up a few steps as he peered through the darkness.

Something snagged on his foot, sliding along the dirty floor before him. Zoro paused, sheathing one of his swords as he fished for Sanji's lighter. It took two or three tries with his thumb on the wheel before the soft flame flickered across the tunnel.

The dirt was soft and looked worn. Whatever had made these tunnels wasn't human. It looked like it had been nudged or clawed away and thick and large silken thread stretched from tunnel to tunnel, now slightly marred from where Kitetsu had damaged it.

There, tangled in the web just before Zoro's feet, was the book that had been snatched from him earlier that day. The swordsman crouched down, pulling the book free from the stubborn sticky web and brushing off insects. He'd gotten the book back!

-But lost the person it was meant for, meaning that he really hadn't managed to achieve anything by this. He still only had half of the whole. He tucked the old book into his haramaki, rising back to his full height as realization dawned on him.

Spiders. Zoro suddenly grew hyper aware of the soft clawing sounds from somewhere further down the tunnel.

This was the burrow of a large tropical spider of some kind, judging from the width and height of the tunnel, this spider was easily the size of a horse. Zoro started running again, his blood running cold at the idea of such a large and possibly poisonous spider.

There was no way someone as strong as Sanji could have been poisoned or eaten this easily.

Normally Zoro wouldn't be this concerned; but he could faintly remember Usopp talking about Sanji being scared of spiders once. Or, at least, that was what the sharpshooter had started saying before he'd gotten a kick to the head and Sanji started yelling at Zoro that the long nose was lying.

If the cook was truly scared of spiders, he could have gone into a panic or frozen in shock. Even people that WEREN'T scared of spiders would probably panic if one larger than themselves yanked them into a dark tunnel.

Zoro held his breath, trying to inhale as little of the horribly stale and pungent air around him. He sheathed his sword; trying not to get it caught on the sticky web again.

His thumb was getting warm from holding up the lighter as he made his way past animal remains and thick spider webs, each step brought him closer to the muffled echo of something familiar.

He could hear the uncomfortable crunching of insects under his feet, swarming around his boots and fluttering from wall to wall, some of them drawn to the flame of his lighter.

An occasional bug landed on his hand; crawling up his fingers towards the flame until its antenna burned off and it fell on the ground with an agonized squeak.

The air was getting thinner and the stench was growing stronger. It was the stench of death; Zoro could tell from the horribly acidic scent that lingered around his nostrils and down his throat. Zoro wasn't a squeamish man; he'd seen plenty of death in his relatively short life.

Half eaten animals dangled from webs and stared their maggot ridden eyes at Zoro, who only got more determined to ignore them each step he took.

Oddly enough, the flame of the lighter was growing brighter, the long tongue of fire stretching almost completely up to the ceiling now.

Zoro grimaced from seeing all the rotten animal corpses and watching the light flicker off of the viscous pools of blood and body fluids. Zoro tried his best not to step in them.

None of the remains seemed to be human. Either the spiders ate them completely and left nothing to rot, or they brought them to a specific place to eat.

Maybe to feed their young? Was that where they were taking Sanji?

The smell was getting worse and the sounds were getting louder, the occasional echo of the cook's voice reached his ears, urging him forward almost desperately.

He wanted to get out of here and NEEDED to get the cook out of here. The tunnels split into multiple ways, each one as dark and pungent as the other.

Zoro squinted into the darkness, listening as close as he possibly could for Sanji. He needed something, anything. He couldn't make a wrong turn here. It could cost the cook another shred of sanity and he didn't have much to begin with-

**"GO AWAY! YOU HORRIBLE HAIRY MONSTER! GET YOUR SHITTY WEB AWAY FROM-"**

Zoro's heart jumped at the sound and he started moving again, choosing the leftmost hole and relying on his instinct. Sanji was in good enough condition to scream, even if the abrupt stop to his insult was rather alarming.

He wanted to yell out; call out for the cook to tell him he was on his way. He grit his teeth, holding back, in this case it could be crucial to at least have the element of surprise.

He was hunting another predator after all. One that could see in the dark and handle the rapidly dwindling oxygen supply better.

The tunnel air was possibly more gas than oxygen now, and the flame of the lighter was still getting dangerously long. The insects were getting larger and more aggressive about climbing his hand to swarm the flame.

Zoro grimaced and put the lighter out, shaking the bugs off as he focused on following the muffled sounds of the cook's voice.

It took a few seconds for Zoro's eyes to adjust to the dark again. He slowed his pace slightly. Sanji's muffled yelling was getting louder with each step he took. He could hear the anger and fear in Sanji's tone from where he stood.

Then, when he rounded a corner, he could see the uncomfortable silhouette of something large and eight legged in the tunnel, carrying something long and squirming. The white of the spider web contrasted the darkness.

As silently as he could, Zoro drew his swords, holding his breath and hoping the spider couldn't smell him through the pungent odor around them.

The tunnel was dark enough, and the spider was struggling to wrap a web around Sanji's mouth with the slow, unnatural movements of its forelegs.

One slash. This was only an insect after all, a giant insect, but still probably just an insect. One slash to cut it wide open, then he'd snatch the cook and get out of this horrible place.

Zoro placed the Wado into his mouth, trying to inhale as little as possible as he did. Some sort of insect crawled over his shoulder, but Zoro ignored it, getting the cook back was his only thought now.

Zoro crouched, staring at the slightly brighter silhouette of the wrapped up blond. In a second, it would all be over.

"Oni-" Zoro groused and the spider paused, turning clumsily in the narrow space. "-giri!"

The hairy beast barely managed to turn halfway before Zoro sliced his way through its hairy midsection, cutting it into three writhing and twitching parts as it shrieked in agony.

Thick green liquid oozed from the cuts, legs clawing at the tunnel around them before they twitched and drew towards what was left of its torso.

"MMH-HM!" Sanji screamed through the thick web around his mouth and Zoro had to squint to see the blonde's pale face through the dark. He looked panicked and relieved at the same time, kicking and struggling to raise his head from the insect covered ground.

"Sshhh- be quiet idiot cook-" Zoro hissed, running his fingertips down Sanji's face as he tried to slide his fingers under the web to rip it off. Sanji was cocooned all the way up to his nose, leaving only half of his face exposed. "I'll try to get these off and we'll get out of here-"

"BMMFH! HMMPFHH!" Sanji struggled, staring at him wide eyed as insects crawled through his golden hair. "GMMHH- HMMM OPFFFF MHP!" The cook shook his head frantically, giving Zoro a pleading look as a large beetle crept up the side of his face.

"Don't be such a wuss-" Zoro huffed as he brushed the insects off Sanji's hair and face and tugged on the web around him impatiently.

He raised the blond up and rested him against his knee as he struggled to get his fingers under the web. It was too tight and was sticking to the cook's face, making it impossible to get any grip without his hands getting stuck to the blond.

" Hold on- I need to see what I'm doing." Zoro stopped yanking for long enough to raise Sanji's lighter, the flame rising almost completely to the ceiling of the tunnel. Sanji gave a muffled whimper when the light illuminated the giant hairy spider. Its dozen eyes stared at them with a morbid red glisten.

A few more minutes Zoro struggled, one hand yanking at the web as another one held the lighter. After a lot of struggling, Zoro managed to grab hold of a patch of web at Sanji's side, yanking it out and stretching it enough to free Sanji's hand up to his wrist. This web wasn't sticky and somehow slid together into a thick rope while in Zoro's grip. Strangely, it was slick.

Oil?

"THERE." Zoro grinned in satisfaction when Sanji's free hand started clawing at the web it could reach. "Hold on or you'll get it stuck again-" Zoro hissed, slapping the cook's wrist as he started investigating the oily substance he'd contracted from the web.

Magnolia?

"HMM-HF!" Sanji's hand suddenly grabbed Zoro's hand, yanking him forward as the blond stared past him into the dark tunnel.

"What are you doing crap coo-" Zoro's sentence died in his throat when he could see the long hairy legs appear around a corner at the edge of the illuminated hallway. The hairs at the back of his head stood on end, the cook looked terrified, arching his neck as much as the web allowed to stare down the other end of the hallway.

Zoro listened for a few seconds, hearing multiple hisses and the crunching sound of heavy legs crushing bones and dirt coming from all directions. It sounded like more than one spider, it actually sounded like a dozen.

"MMMHM." Sanji stared at Zoro with extremely determined expression. His eyes were wide with fear and anger as he let go of Zoro's wrist and pointed to the ceiling of the cave. "MMHM!"

"Up?" Zoro repeated and the blond nodded, squirming to sit up with his cocooned torso. Zoro put the Wado back into between his teeth, taking a few steps away from the blond so any dirt from the ceiling wouldn't bury him alive. Zoro looked up, trying to remember how far down the hole had been.

"HM-HM!" Sanji urged as the sounds of spiders got closer.

"I know, be silent, curly bastard-" Zoro grit his teeth, sending all his strength into a 300-pound cannon into the earth above them.

The dirt collapsed and fell around him, piling at his feet, yet there was no sky in sight. Zoro sent up another one, glaring up at the collapsing roof as the tunnel started shaking and crumbling around them. The walls wouldn't be able to take another hit without them being buried alive.

Luffy would never forgive them if that happened.

The spiders were hissing loudly a short distance away, trying to make their way through the crumbling walls. Sanji was struggling to shake the dirt and insects from his hair as Zoro stood still in the tunnel, staring up as the dirt hit his face and piled on his shoulders.

Open.

Zoro's grip tightened on the Wado, his knuckles whitening as he grit his teeth around her.

Come on. Open.

Sanji huffed behind him, falling to his side when the walls started caving in, dirt piling on his wrapped up legs.

It can't end like this.

The soil closing the large hole Zoro had created sagged, tearing apart as the layer of grass gave in and fell into the hole. Zoro grinned, air pouring into the tunnel and the stars glittering through the thick canopy above them.

It wouldn't end like that.

"COOK! WE'RE OUT." Zoro sheathed his swords, running to the blond and yanking him from the tunnel floor and tossing him over his shoulder.

The cook gave an insulted howl and hit Zoro on the back with his one free hand while Zoro began climbing, pulling himself up on the thick tree roots and staring up at the inviting night sky above them.

Each grip on the tree's massive roots brought him closer to the surface, each new gulp of air was cold and fresh. The hissing of the giant spiders didn't matter now, he could kill them all later when he was away from the stench that made his eyes water. When the cook was free and could fight with him.

His fingers clawed at the grass as his head broke surface. Green was level with green for a moment before Zoro hauled the blond out of the hole, pulling himself up and groaning with the effort. Sanji rolled to the side of the hole, propping himself up with his one free hand and staring at Zoro angrily.

"MHMM! MHNN- MPH!" He gestured to the hole that was sinking towards the opening. Long hairy legs rising from it like some sort of tentacle.

"I KNOW ALREADY!" Zoro huffed, drawing his sword and cutting down a nearby tree, watching it fall for what felt like an eternity until it hit the ground with a loud, earth shattering thump.

The hole caved in further, the spider legs withdrew for a second before rising again with an angry hiss.

Zoro cut up the tree, jumping over the massive trunk and bracing himself at its side. His heels sank into the dirt as he started pushing, the bark grating the skin on the back of his shoulders as he pushed with all his might. Rolling the giant piece of wood over the opening in the ground and breaking off the one protruding spider leg.

The ground under them sank a little. The giant piece of wood disappeared halfway into the ground before it stopped, closing off the hole and blocking any of the multiple spiders from following them. The night stilled again as the sounds of hissing died out and the heavy breathing of the two lost Strawhats filled the cold night air.

Zoro looked over to the cook, watching him lie on his back and stare up at the sky. He looked paler than usual; his skin glistened with sweat in between the thick webbing. Zoro let his eyes linger on the blond, adrenaline rushing through his veins and sending a strange warm tingle through his chest and all the way to his fingertips.

Zoro got to his feet, shook dirt out of his green hair, and rubbed the back of his neck as he made his way over to the cook. Sanji turned his head, dirty golden hair fanned out in the grass as the cook looked at him, one visible eye resting on him as he came closer.

The heavy feeling in Zoro's gut returned as he crouched next to the blond. "You got lost."

Sanji tossed back his head and let out a muffled laughter, soft wrinkles forming at the bridge of his nose as his giant grin stretched the sticky web it was hidden under. Zoro grinned at the sight, watching the cook struggle to breathe through his nose as he laughed.

Zoro chuckled when he noticed the blonde's nostrils flaring madly at the effort, his chuckles eventually breaking into an all out laughter.

The tension drained from his body as he watched Sanji attempt to pull his arm free from the spider web. He had the book now. They could get back to the Sunny now. Home sounded so good, a long hot shower to clean off that smell.

"You can't get it off like that curly-brow." Zoro hummed as the laughter died out, grabbing hold of Sanji's wrist and pulling it towards him to examine the strange oil lathering the cook's coat.

The blond didn't put up a serious struggle, barely trying to yank his hand out of Zoro's grasp as the swordsman ran a thumb over it to gather the slight slick of oil between Sanji's fingers.

Zoro smelled it carefully, recognizing the scent of Magnolia oil. "It's oil, it makes the spider web less sticky for some reason." Zoro pointed out, glancing down at the cook who was looking away from him, staring out at the pitch black forest.

The blond didn't do anything; his hand not making any advances towards the web. Zoro rolled his eyes, attempting to slide his own oil-slicked fingers down the side of Sanji's face to pull on the spider web.

It worked! His fingers slid under the white webbing with ease. Zoro could feel the cook's pulse quickening in his grasp as he pulled at the web, feeling the contours of Sanji's lips at his fingertips. Maybe it was uncomfortable? Like tearing off a band-aid slowly? His fingers stopped at the corner of Sanji's lips, oil gone as he pulled back his fingers.

"The oil's all spent, I need more of it if I'm going to get these off." Zoro grumbled, forcing the blond to look at him with a determined yank on the mouth-web. "Got any more on you?"

Sanji stared at him, nostrils flared slightly before the cook let out a low groan, possibly of defeat before he started pulling at the web around his pants' pocket. The action only tightened the web around his arm, immobilizing the previously free appendage.

"You're just going to make it worse by struggling, you idiot-" Zoro grumbled, receiving a venomous glare from the blond and a spirited attempt at a kick to the knee. The struggling only made the web around Sanji tighten and Zoro pushed the blond down into the grass to stop him from strangling himself.

"It's just in your pants pocket, right?" The swordsman pulled gently at the oil-covered web at Sanji's pocket, lining his hand up with the cook's thigh and trying to slide his fingers into the pocket. It was tight, but the fabric seemed to be soaked enough to transfer some oil to his fingers. He could feel the outline of the bottle through the web.

Zoro arched a brow when Sanji's entire body seemed to stiffen under his palm. Sanji's face paled considerably as the cook stared at him wide eyed for some reason. Was the cook really that much against Zoro helping him out of this tangle?

"It's the only way to get you out of there-" Zoro paused, grinning in challenge. "-Unless you want me to carry you back to the ship like a big sack of particularly stupid potatoes?"

* * *

**CHAPTER 2 - END**

**Special thanks to A3shFaerie, the lovely beta for this story!**

**Please tell me what you think! (I had to study spiders and ... decomposition... for this story. Ugh.)**

**-BBB! **


	3. Passive Agressive

**Chapter 3 - Passive Agressive**

* * *

Zoro frowned, trying to align his hand with Sanji's thigh to slip his fingers down into the cook's much-too-tight pants pocket. The bottle of oil he needed was there, wedged tightly beneath the fabric and sticky webbing.

"MPPH-FPP... HMMPF!" Sanji reasoned from besides Zoro, struggling to sit up before Zoro forced him back into the ground. "MHMPH!"

"I'm not sure if I want to untie your stupid mouth FIRST or LAST." Zoro groaned, rolling his eyes at the death glare the cook was sending him.

The blond was squirming, trying to pull his arms free and tossing his head side to side in a frantic attempt to uncover his mouth. It was just making the web stick to more of his skin and fuse to the black suit.

"Stop moving!" Zoro hissed, "You're making it worse! See?" Zoro gestured to the part of Sanji's face he'd managed to clear of web earlier. "It's sticking to it again, just be still and let me get that bottle." He sent the cook a challenging look, waiting for the blond to stop thrashing around before he continued.

For a few tense seconds, they had a silent staring contest, Zoro being the only one who was silent by choice. Sanji's mind seemed to be racing, probably thinking of a way to get out of the web without his suit getting damaged.

Eventually Sanji gave out a long reluctant groan, laying down and closing his eyes with a soft shake of his head."Hmmpf, mmhh-pphm."

Zoro gave a test release of the blonde's shoulder to see if he'd start thrashing around again. Sanji lay still, eyes closed and curled eyebrow lowered in what seemed to be the top half of a grimace. Zoro decided that it wasn't a good idea to rile the cook up any further now that he'd finally consented, so he bit back his sarcastic comments and focused on the task at hand.

The web seemed to fold together into a long taffy-like rope when it came into contact with oil, making it stretchy enough to slip off Sanji's slender frame. If he had that oil, he might be able to pull the web off the cook with no damage done to his precious suit. Not that he cared; he just didn't want Sanji to bitch at him over this for months. His alcohol was at stake here!

The top of the pocket was uncovered from the web and Zoro pulled at the top hem of the pocket as he slid his hand into the hot and oil-soaked cavern of fabric. His fingertips trailed the top of Sanji's thigh muscles as he explored further down the pocket.

It was fascinating how such slender things could be so powerful. He'd seen Sanji break walls and bones with these legs. Zoro felt Sanji's thigh twitch and tense against his fingers, pinning his hand inside the tight space for a second. Zoro huffed as he struggled to move his hand.

"Oi! Cook! How am I supposed to get inside if you don't relax? I can't move when you flex like that!" Zoro growled, glaring at the side of the blonde's face; the bastard was staring into the forest again. "Relax and stop twitching! It's way too tight like this! I can't even pull it out at this rate!"

There was another twitch into Zoro's palm and for a moment he could feel his fingertips sink into Sanji's leg. The blond gave something that resembled a whimper and Zoro's hand was released from its vice as Sanji relaxed. Zoro didn't move, he was too busy staring at the blonde's pained expression.

"Oi? Cook?" Zoro leant over, not moving his hand from Sanji's pocket as he inspected Sanji's face. "Why are you making that face? Does it hurt?" Zoro furrowed his brow, trying to figure out where the web could be pulling at Sanji's skin. Zoro didn't get any answer, the blond simply stared into the forest with wide eyes and his ears were getting red again.

"I'll go slower." Zoro eventually assured the blond after a slightly awkward silence, and turning back to the task at hand. It was a bit easier to slide his fingers deeper now that Sanji was relaxed and the oil was helping. He could feel the smooth edge of the glass bottle under the tip of his middle finger.

"I found it." Zoro grinned to Sanji, whose expression was a mix of pain and anger. Zoro had no idea why the blond was angry with HIM though, maybe the web was pulling at his beard or something. It wasn't his fault the idiot had to thrash around and get his hair all tangled up! The bastard was so unfair.

The bottle slipped past his finger when he attempted to catch it between two fingers, the oil making it practically impossible to get a decent hold of. "It's all slick, my fingers keep slipping against it." Zoro explained.

Sanji's hips were twitching again, occasionally bucking into his hand. It wasn't helping though; he still couldn't get a proper grip on the bottle. He couldn't blame Sanji for trying to help.

"I'm so close, just a little more." Zoro groaned, feeling the glass slip past his fingers again and spill another dose of oil over his fingers. The oil soaking Sanji's clothes were warming up too. The cook must be sweltering hot from underneath all this web.

"Mmmpphh..." Sanji's voice was almost completely inaudible, his muffled tone somewhere between pleading and hateful. Zoro glanced up, the idiot's face was all reddish and he was breathing heavily, the spider web around his chest straining with each breath. He was looking at him now though; staring straight at him with the most puzzling look Zoro had ever seen on the blonde's face.

"Oi, is it hard to breathe?" Zoro grit his teeth, watching the strained expression on Sanji's face turn almost pained as the blond screwed his eyes shut. Zoro pulled his oil soaked hand out of Sanji's pocket reluctantly. The cook arched his neck as much as he could with the web around his throat, his nostrils flared as he drank in the cold evening air greedily.

"I'll get some of it off your face, I think I have enough oil to free your mouth." Zoro moved up to Sanji's face, forcing the blond to look at him with his cleaner hand as he started sliding his oil slicked digits along the blonde's jaw line and cheek. Brushing the back of his fingers softly along Sanji's jaw line, feeling soft stubble against his knuckles.

The idiot curly brow really had soft skin and his jaw line was much less jagged than Zoro's own. The swordsman had never thought about the cook's face before; it was so elegantly proportioned. Masculine and soft at the same time, how was that even possible?

Zoro realized he must have been making a strange expression, since the cook was staring at him like he'd suddenly turned purple. He awkwardly cleared his throat and got back to work, leaning over to try to free Sanji's top lip. He felt the outline under his fingertip; he'd just have to move a little further down, since the cook's lips were rather full. Not that he'd ever noticed.

For a few moments, the swordsman tried to work the remaining oil along Sanji's mouth. Zoro felt the heat of Sanji's flustered skin on his fingers; the blond must be suffocating from all the heat. Did the spiders use the web to boil their prey alive or something?

Zoro's index finger dropped over the edge of Sanji's lip, slipping in between the soft mounds and brushing slightly against the cook's teeth. Zoro grinned, "Yosh! It's in, I'll be able to loosen it up now." He pulled at the web as he ran his finger along the inner contours of the cook's mouth.

Sanji's breath on his finger was extremely warm; Zoro could see the hot air from Sanji's mouth condense in the cold night air around his mouth.

Before slicking them up with oil, Sanji's lips were dry and sticking to the web. Zoro made sure to work the oil along the entire lip to prevent it from sticking to the web again. His brow furrowed as he focused on Sanji's mouth.

"Almost got the top lip free curly brow." Zoro grumbled to himself as he focused on some extra sticky web stuck in the cupid's bow at the middle of Sanji's lip. It took a few strokes, but he finally managed to get the web off. His felt Sanji's tongue slip against the tip of his finger, grinning as the blond grimaced at the taste of oil. "Careful where you stick your tongue idiot. Or is it just so eager to sprout nonsense again that you can't control it?"

"Fuwk yough-" Sanji managed to spit out around the web with a huff of hot breath. Zoro laughed at that, he almost didn't want to free the bastard's mouth, just so see him struggle to insult him like this. But Sanji wasn't even half the fun if he couldn't fight or talk, so Zoro slid his finger along the rim of Sanji's mouth, stretching the corner of his mouth a little as he pulled the web down to Sanji's chin.

"Easier to breathe now?" Zoro frowned, looking at the web clinging to Sanji's bottom lip and chin, making the cook look pouty and embarrassed.

"Much better shit head, now get off me! Your dirty hands are going to get Marimo-germs all over me!" Sanji huffed, grimacing as much as he could with his chin wrapped in spider web. "Aren't you a swordsman? Cut me loose!"

Zoro rolled his eyes, regretting freeing the other man's mouth as he turned back to Sanji's pocket. "Even if I cut the web it's still going to stick to your suit and face in clusters. The fastest way for you to get out of this is to free the rest of your ugly face and body... or you can try to take off your clothes."

The cook paled instantly at that, staring at Zoro with his mouth as agape as he could. The swordsman huffed, turning back to the glass bottle in Sanji's pocket. "I thought so." Zoro rolled his eyes, sliding his hand along the cook's leg and towards the bottle making a slight dent at the front of Sanji's pants.

"O-OI!" Sanji hissed, his thigh muscles tightening again and pinning Zoro's hand stuck. The swordsman let out an annoyed groan and leveled Sanji an unimpressed look. The blond was gritting his teeth, eyes closed and brow furrowed in pain.

"Does it still hurt? I thought I loosened it properly." Zoro gestured to Sanji's mouth, and the cook's face reddened slightly and he sent Zoro a death glare.

"STOP TALKING!" Sanji yelled, growling in annoyance before he let out a long pained groan and relaxed back into the grass. "You're an idiot, a dense... stupid... ignorant... blind... perverted... asshole." Sanji hissed between grit teeth as he closed his eyes.

Zoro rolled his eyes. He wasn't in the mood to argue with the cook right now. His hand was free to roam further into Sanji's pocket, seeking the bottle that seemed to be nestled around the far back of Sanji's pocket. Zoro's entire hand was almost inside the pocket and the web was barring it from going any further.

The glass bottle slipped back and forth under Zoro's fingers, running along the oil-slicked dent of Sanji's leg and rotating repeatedly when Zoro tried to roll it closer to him. Zoro's patience was rapidly running thin, and Sanji's occasional bucking towards his hand wasn't helping.

"Oi, cook! Stop squirming, I'm almost all the way in-" Zoro growled low, managing to slip a finger inside the tight mouth of the bottle and grab the rim. "Got it!" Zoro grinned in satisfaction, slowly fishing the bottle out of Sanji's pocket. It was the same make as his sword oil; it was even the same brand.

"How much oil is left?" Sanji asked, turning to look at the bottle between Zoro's fingers. The clear liquid splashed around just below the center.

"About half a bottle." Zoro shrugged, spilling a little of the oil on his fingers before he reached up to free the blonde's jaw and chin from the web. The web slid off, pulling at the idiotic chin fuzz the cook insisted on sporting for some reason. "Is it for your knives?"

"What else could it be for you idiot?" Sanji huffed, grimacing at Zoro when the web was pulled down. Sanji's throat rubbed against Zoro's fingers when the swordsman started pulling the web away from Sanji's throat.

"OUCH! Stop it! You're pulling on my hair you bastard-" Sanji hissed, leaning his head to the side to reveal the back of his head, blond locks sticking to the web in a nightmarishly tangled mess. Zoro stared at it in slight horror, not sure if he wanted to have the cook screaming at the thought of all the hair he was probably going to lose.

"... It's not so bad." Zoro tried reasoning, faking a grin as he reached out for his sword casually. Sanji stared at him for a heartbeat before he started shaking his head manically and screaming.

"NO! YOU'RE NOT ALLOWED TO CUT MY HAIR!" Sanji practically shrieked. "GET IT OUT WITH THE OIL! NO CUTTING IT!"

"But it's going to take all night-"

"I DON'T CARE. IF THAT SWORD GOES ANYWHERE NEAR MY HAIR THEN YOU'LL BE DRINKING NOTHING BUT WATER ON THE SUNNY FOREVER."

There was a long awkward pause after that, both men staring at each other in horror while they struggled to conquer their personal fears: uneven hair and life with limited alcohol.

Zoro slowly and carefully retracted his hand, showing his empty palm to Sanji like the other man was a dangerous animal. "Alright. Oil."

Zoro slicked his fingers up with oil, before pulling Sanji up to a sitting position and sitting down on the ground behind him. Propping the blond up against his knee Zoro started combing through the back of Sanji's head to get the locks to separate themselves from the web. The oil made the cook's hair appear wet, making it glisten between Zoro's fingers like soft and sleek bars of gold.

It proved much harder to free each lock, causing Sanji to twitch on occasion when Zoro tugged too hard. "Oi, careful Marimo-bastard." The cook hissed when Zoro gave a vengeful tug at his hair. Realizing it was futile to complain, the blond relaxed against Zoro's knee. "I want a smoke."

"Too bad." Zoro mused, grinning as the cook glared at him over his shoulder. Zoro worked his fingers down to the last few tangles of hair that clung to the back of Sanji's neck. "I don't get why you insist on keeping your hair this long." Zoro grumbled, causing Sanji to chuckle lightly.

"Of course you don't understand, idiot. It's fashion." Sanji hummed, ignoring the unnecessary tug Zoro gave his hair at the insult. "It's why I look _good_ and you look like a **hobo**."

"Well your _FASHION_ is free now." Zoro finished untangling the mess at the back of Sanji's head, pulling the web down to Sanji's shoulder blades, making his way to the side and allowing the cook to fall into the grass as he moved over to slick up and free the front of Sanji's suit.

"My suit is going to be ruined." Sanji mumbled from his spot in the grass, staring up at the dark sky. "Even if it somehow miraculously survives you yanking on it like it's one of your potato sack shirts, being slathered with oil, AND dragged through a dirty spider hole full of rotten animal remains, there's no way I'm going to wear it again after this."

"Yeah, did you notice?" Zoro ignored Sanji's idiotic complaints, slipping a web off Sanji's shoulder and working his way over to the blonde's chest pocket. "There were no human remains in there."

"I didn't see much, it was all dark down there and I was trying not to think about what KIND of maggot ridden flesh I was being rubbed against." Sanji growled bitterly, shuddering at the memory. "…But now that you mention it, I didn't see a single human bone or piece of clothing down there."

"The spiders were probably what got that thief earlier." Zoro thought out loud, feeling the dent of Sanji's packet of cigarettes under his fingers. Should he tell the blond about the book? Zoro contemplated it. He felt the book press against his skin beneath his haramaki.

"Poor bastard." Sanji said in a soft tone. Zoro watched the almost melancholy look on Sanji's face.

If he told the cook about it now, the bastard might start struggling and yelling. Zoro had spent too long trying to free the cook without ripping off his jacket and tossing it over a cliff to risk it all now. He didn't have the patience for this. Besides, if Sanji hated the book, he was going to be furious to have ruined a suit over it.

No. It was for the best that he waited and slipped the book to him when he wasn't paying attention, or at least he'd wait until they were out of the forest. Zoro fished the cigarettes out of Sanji's newly freed pocket, dangling them in from of the blond to catch his attention.

"Ah!" Sanji's face lit up at the sight of the slightly crushed packet of cigarettes and he squirmed to sit up. Zoro hit the bottom of the back, surprised to see a whole and uncrushed cigarette pop out at him eagerly. He picked it up gingerly, trying not to crush the fragile thing as he offered it to the blond.

"My lighter's gone, though." Sanji mumbled as he leant over, skillfully wrapping his oiled and glistening lips around the filter and rolling it to the side of his mouth. Pulling it gently from between Zoro's fingers and derailing his train of thought. It was amazing how soft the cook's lips looked from this distance. They had felt soft too, when he was running his finger over them earlier.

Zoro broke his stare at the blonde's mouth, fumbling in his pants pocket for a second before he pulled up the golden lighter. Sanji's curled eyebrow rose at the sight and those damn lips curved into a gentle smile.

"You found it! You should have told me, you bastard!" Sanji said cheerfully, leaning over as much as the web around his torso allowed. "Light it for me." The blond wiggled the cigarette towards the lighter, looking expectantly up at Zoro. The swordsman stared back. The horribly hot and heavy feeling in his gut hit him like Luffy's jet bazooka.

Zoro's thumb flicked over the wheel on the lighter and for a moment both their faces were illuminated with a warm yellow glow in contrast with the cold, blue of the dark forest around them.

Sanji leaned closer to the flame, urging Zoro to bring the flame to the tip of Sanji's cigarette, holding it as steady as he could as the blond took a few breaths. The tip of the cigarette burned bright orange and Sanji looked up at Zoro, their eyes meeting for a second that seemed to last forever.

"Oi, Zoro." Sanji said low, breaking the eye contact as he tilted his head back, breathing the smoke into the night air above them. "Finish untying my shirt. I'm going to take off my jacket. It's done for anyway."

Zoro flicked the lighter closed; snuffing the flame, but the warmth in his chest remained. Zoro felt like there was a live snake thrashing around in his stomach. Was he getting sick too?

"For once you make sense." Zoro managed to huff, reaching out to tear the web from Sanji's shirt.

He freed Sanji's hands up to his wrist, clearing the web from the shirt cuffs before he helped the other man slide the jacket over his shoulders. He could hear the golden buttons rip as Sanji shed his cocoon of web and jacket.

With a loud crack of his shoulder joints, Sanji stretched out his arms, rubbing his precious hands together experimentally to get the blood flowing through his veins again. The light blue shirt was much too bright in the night air, making it almost impossible to ignore the curve of Sanji's torso when he stretched out his back.

"Hand me the bottle." Sanji put out his newly freed hand, flicking the ashes off his cigarette as he avoided eye contact. "I'll free my legs myself."

Zoro passed him the bottle, leaning backwards and relaxing as he watched Sanji coat his hands with oil and slide the web off in smooth, careful motions. The swordsman watched silently, racking his brain with reasons for that uneasy feeling in his gut.

Was he just hungry? Zoro had been hungry before; he'd been hungry for days, weeks even. That was a gnawing, sickening sensation. This was less empty and more... desperate. His chest was warming up as well. Was this maybe what the blond had? Was it contagious? It wasn't painful at all, just... tense.

Sanji slid the last of the web off like some sort of giant sock and rubbed his legs to start the circulation before he got up. He was slightly wobbling but it was nothing that a few inhuman stretches didn't fix.

Zoro watched with a mix of annoyance and awe. He knew the blond was showing off, but he'd never seen anyone else capable of raising his foot vertically in the air with so little effort.

"So, what direction should we take?" Sanji gave Zoro an expectant look, blowing smoke from his nostrils. The swordsman scanned the surrounding area, inhaling deeply and glaring at a few trees. Eventually, Zoro got up, pointing to the forest to Sanji's left.

"This way."

"Great," Sanji said and started walking to the right. "Then we're going this way."

"OI!" Zoro snapped, storming up to the cook and frowning at him. "What's that supposed to mean!?" They made their way in between trees, foliage pulling at their clothes and branches crunching under their feet.

"If you lead the way, we'll end up in the New World on foot." Sanji hissed, crushing his cigarette between his fingers. "We need to get to higher ground so we can look around for the Sunny. Maybe climb a tree if we don't find any hills."

Zoro grumbled, one hand resting on the hilts of his swords and his other buried in his pocket. Sanji was walking right beside him, close enough that their shoulders occasionally brushed together. Zoro had no idea why he noticed every time it happened; maybe it was annoying him? Yes, that was probably it.

Before Zoro could point out that the cook was walking much closer than usual, the blond froze in his tracks, staring off into the forest. Zoro could see the blonde's brow fall as he listened and Zoro also strained his ears.

Water? Zoro furrowed his brow, feeling the warmth of Sanji's body seep into his shoulder. He could hear running water. "It's a river." Zoro pointed out and the cook rolled his one visible eye and huffed.

"I know. Let's make a stop there and wash up. YOU might be able to stand the smell, but I can't." Sanji grumbled, taking a few steps towards the sound before he paused and waited for Zoro expectantly. "Start moving, moss-brain. We don't have all night."

"What? Scared the spiders will get you again?" Zoro mused, walking towards the blond who didn't resume his walking until Zoro was well within touching distance. It was nice walking so close to the cook.

"Shut up." Sanji grimaced and lit himself another cigarette, the glow of the lighter flickering across his face for a second. "I just don't want you to get your ass any more lost than it already is." Sanji broke off a rather large dead branch, weighing it for a second before breaking off another one.

Zoro arched his brow, watching the other man gather dry branches before he realized it was for firewood. Zoro began gathering the ones he could see, cutting off rather large branches into logs and tucking it under his arms. They made their way towards the sound of running water, secretly competing who could gather more wood.

The river was wide, snaking lazily past them in the moonlight. The rocky riverside was dry and free of trees, so the two lost Strawhats dropped their sizable pile of firewood at a convenient distance from the water.

"Put some to the side to add later." Sanji instructed, grabbing his cigarette packet and ripping out a piece of the paper. After splashing a small amount of the oil onto a branch, Sanji pull out his lighter and lit the piece of paper. Once it was burning brightly he tucked it gently into the oiled pile of branches.

Zoro took a large amount of branches and put them aside, crouching next to the makeshift fire pit and admiring how easily Sanji's fire lit. The cook blew at the ambers gently, poking at them with a small twig until the small orange cluster erupted into flames. The oil caught fire, spreading through the center of the pile of firewood.

Not even two minutes later, the fire was burning bright, bathing them both in a warm yellow glow. Neither of them seemed to want to move, both men sitting on the rocky outlet of the river and watching the fire dance on the rocks. Sanji pulled a cigarette from the mutilated package, lighting the cigarette fearlessly on the open flames.

"You'll get burned." Zoro warned, watching as Sanji sucked on the cigarette and blew out smoke as he pulled away from the fire pit. The flickering light from the fire danced around Sanji's features, sharp shadows making the blonde's smirk even more mysteriously than usual.

"I'm a cook. Playing with fire is my trade."

Zoro was about to comment on how stupid Sanji's statement was when the other man stood up and kicked off his fancy dress shoes. Zoro froze in place, watching as Sanji removed his socks and tie. He couldn't move, watching almost hypnotized at Sanji's back as the blond shed his shirt; lean muscles so different from his own rippled under the white skin.

"I'm going to wash." Sanji said casually, folding his shirt and placing it on top of his shoes. "Unless you want me to kick you into the river, I suggest you do the same." Sanji wasn't looking at him, unbuttoning his pants as he faced away from Zoro.

"Whatever." Zoro grumbled, forcing himself to look away as the blond pulled down his pants. He shouldn't be so fascinated by this. He'd seen the blond naked before and it had never gotten to him like this. The tension in his gut returned and Zoro frowned as he yanked off his own shirt and tossed it to the side.

The sound of Sanji cursing as he walked into the river grated on Zoro's sanity. He wanted to look. Why? Why did he want to look? It was stupid. Zoro glanced over his shoulder. Sanji was rubbing the dirt and oil from his hair, half submerged in the lazily flowing river. Zoro wrapped the book carefully into his haramaki, covering it with his pants and boots before he paused.

Should he strip completely? He stretched slightly as he contemplated it. If Sanji was naked, it would be weird if he wasn't naked too. But if Sanji wasn't naked, it would be awkward if he was. Zoro carefully arranged his swords besides the pile of clothes, making sure they were safe from all water and still close enough for him to grab them if something attacked.

He'd have to see if Sanji had taken off his underwear before he made his own move. Zoro turned around, glancing to the pile of clothes to see if the cook's underwear was neatly folded among them.

Sanji was looking at him. Half of his face was submerged in the water with his hair lazily moving in the pull of the stream. Zoro couldn't tell if the cook was wearing his underwear, but Sanji was looking at him expectantly, his stupid curled eyebrow raised slightly. Zoro grumbled. If the cook wasn't naked in there, he was a damn prude. Who would want to get their underwear soaked anyway?

Zoro turned around, stripping completely and cursing under his breath as he walked into the river. He could FEEL the cook's eyes following him, even if he could only see one of them and the cook didn't even turn his head to follow him. Why was he feeling so self-conscious? He had seen ALL the male members of the crew naked at least once.

The river was cold, but not painfully so. Zoro had swum in colder waters than this back on Drum Island. He leaned back into the stream, feeling the water flow over his shoulders and wash away the dirt and grime from that disgusting spider den. His clothes probably still smelled, but he could wash those out when they got back on the Sunny.

Zoro leaned against one of the larger rocks, staring up at the night sky and scanning the horizon. Was the rest of the crew looking for them? They would probably get themselves lost. They had no sense of direction after all. Zoro was rubbing at a stubborn bloodstain on his forearm when something silver flashed in the water before him.

"Hey! Cook!" Zoro called out as the turned to the cook, only to have the other man jolt harshly from further down the river and stare at him outraged.

"DON'T COME OVER HERE, YOU BASTARD!" Sanji yelled at Zoro, who arched a heavy brow.

"I'm not; look." Zoro raised the fish he'd caught. Its scales glistened in the moonlight. "These are edible, right?"

Sanji paused, eyes narrowed as he squinted through the darkness. "Yeah, catch a couple more and I'll cook them."

The promise of food made catching fish Zoro's top priority. He tossed the one he'd already caught onto the rocky shore and turned back to the water, remaining completely still as he waited for the tell tale glimmer of scales. Before long, there were five sizable fish struggling on the rocky shore by the fire.

Sanji had already finished washing and had started preparing the fish, twisting off their head with terrifying accuracy and no remorse before he threaded the whole thing onto a branch and suspended them over the fire. Zoro left the river with the sixth fish, tossing it to the cook before he turned to get dressed.

The cook was only wearing his underwear, sitting by the fire to dry off. Zoro decided he'd rather not soak his clothes and joined the cook by the fire. Normally he'd sit on the opposite end of the campfire, but tonight he didn't feel normal. So he sat beside the cook, just out of arm's reach.

"They smell good." Zoro commented as he watched the freshly caught fish darken and sizzle on the open fire. His stomach was rumbling again and he could feel the nagging feeling of hunger join the uneasy feeling in his chest.

"The first batch is almost done." Sanji said low, not looking away from the fire.

Zoro glanced over. The blond was hugging his knees, staring into the flames like he was hypnotized. The warm light reflected the few remaining drops of water on Sanji's skin.

"If we follow this river, we might get to the ocean." Zoro reasoned, watching Sanji give one of the fish an experimental poke before he placed it back into the fire.

"Don't be an idiot." Sanji grumbled, closing his eyes contently as a small smile curved his lips. "It could lead us to the opposite side of the island or end up in a lake somewhere." Sanji flicked the ashes off his cigarette, opening his eyes again and giving Zoro a bizarre look that turned Zoro's stomach completely upside down and tied it in a knot. "You really are hopeless, Marimo-bastard."

Zoro felt sick. His heart was beating so hard in his chest he was sure the entire Grand Line could hear it. He felt warm and cold at the same time and he had this horrible fluttering feeling at the bottom of his throat.

He had to talk to Chopper as soon as they made it back to the ship. He felt like his lungs were about to crawl out of his throat.

"The first batch is ready." Sanji declared and their hands brushed lightly as he passed one of the sticks to Zoro. Sanji withdrew his hand casually, turning to eat his own share, as Zoro sat paralyzed and felt the electricity travel up his hand.

Why? What was this sickening flutter in his stomach? Whatever it was, Zoro attempted to kill it with food. It helped a bit, the fish tasted great, which was strange since there was nothing Sanji could have done to add to the taste. It was probably just because of how hungry he was. Food always tasted better when you were hungry.

When both men had eaten their fill, they got dressed in silence. Zoro tucked the book into his haramaki, turning to wait for the cook to finish getting dressed. Sanji always wore so many buttons. Zoro didn't like buttons. He never bothered to do them up when he was wearing shirts. Sanji had bitched at him about this at first, but he never complained anymore.

"So you think we should follow the river, right?" Sanji asked, fixing his tie and pocketing his cigarettes. Zoro nodded, he did think they should follow the river. That's what he'd do if he were alone.

Sanji nodded once, walking towards Zoro and against the flow of the river. "Then we're going this way." Sanji passed Zoro with a subtle grin. Zoro frowned as he stomped after the blond; Sanji was probably the reason the crew was always getting lost.

After walking on level ground for a while, passing a waterfall and a few highly suspicious circular piles of branches and debris, Zoro almost tripped over a mossy rock. A completely square rock.

"Oh. It sort of looks like you." Sanji mused, crouching down and pulling the straw away from the brownish rock, the top and large portion of the sides covered in soft bright green moss. "I think we found where you came from."

"Shut up or I'll make you shut up." Zoro threatened, making his way out of the clearing and up what seemed to be an ancient stone staircase. "Oi, cook." Zoro pointed to the large overgrown stone temple rising out of the undergrowth like a pyramid. "Is this high up enough for you?"

Sanji paused his attempts to pull the "Marimo-rock" out of the ground without damaging the moss, dusting off his hands before he joined Zoro at the base of the temple. His eyes traveled up the crumbling stone steps, lingering on the occasional layer of spider web connecting the each step.

"Yeah." Sanji lit himself another cigarette, starting his climb with an effortless jump. "This will do nicely." The carved stones crumbled slightly under their feet as they made their way up. Zoro winched at each broken carving, knowing that Robin was going to be very displeased with them if she ever found out.

The trees blocking out the horizon moved lower with each new step, slowly making way for the strange split of color where the dark of the sky met the moonlit Grand Line. When the water was this calm, it was hard to believe that this was the pirate's graveyard: the place where so many pirates had lost their lives.

"The shitty old man sailed the Grand Line you know." Sanji said as he paused to light himself another cigarette. "He returned because he wanted to, not because he had to."

Zoro watched as Sanji shook his head softly, hair falling over his face and obscuring his expression as the cook turned around and started climbing again.

"The old fart never told me why he stopped looking."

Zoro's chest tightened uncomfortably at that and the book resting at his hip became heavier and started grating against his skin. Sanji's steps became weighty; it was like the stone under his feet was trembling. Zoro felt each step in his bones.

It was like he was torn, his common sense was telling him to wait, but something stronger, something more primal and raw was screaming at him to hand the book over. Should he? They weren't standing on particularly solid ground right now; if a fight broke out, they might fall.

He could see the stones sink under Sanji's weight, cracks spreading down to where he was standing.

Zoro started moving, running up the steps, trying to catch up to the small distance between himself and Sanji. "Cook! It's collapsing!" Zoro called out, the rock under him crumbling as Sanji turned around.

Zoro unsheathed Wado as fast as he could, sinking the blade into the stone as the last of his foothold collapsed.

"ZORO!" Sanji came running, but made his way carefully towards Zoro. "You shitty bastard, don't you DARE let go!" Sanji grimaced as he cautiously made his way to the edge.

"Shut up!" Zoro grumbled, looking at the maze of half broken pillars, collapsed floors and staircases below. The fall wasn't too high, but he wasn't sure he'd be able to climb back up. He really didn't want to be separated from Sanji in this dark, spider-infested forest. The bastard would just get himself lost.

Zoro tried to pull himself up, but the ledge he was dangling from collapsed further at the stress and Wado slid another inch towards the dark maze below. Zoro cursed under his breath, hearing Sanji make his way to a nearby ledge and lean over, reaching out for Zoro's arm.

"This one is sturdier, stupid bastard, can't you even pick a stronger ledge to dangle from?" Sanji grit his teeth and reached out. "Your hand!"

Wado slid through another inch, the blade slicing the stone like butter as Zoro reached out, fingertips brushing against the cook's before he managed to grab a hold. The grip was firm and confident, and Zoro pulled back his sword, swinging towards Sanji and grabbing hold of the other ledge.

"Get your stupid ass up here!" Sanji huffed, leaning over to grab hold of Zoro's haramaki. Zoro managed to pull himself to safety as Sanji pulled at the green waistband. The tug was enough to cause the book to slip from its hiding place and fall onto the crumbling remains of the floor below them.

"S-shit!" Zoro grit his teeth, glancing over his shoulder to look at the battered blue book that lay in the thick layer of dust and moss below them. He looked for a foothold, trying to pull his arm from Sanji's tight grasp.

"OI! ZORO!" Sanji hissed, stretching his neck to look at the book. "IS THAT BOOK THAT THING? THE THING THAT WAS STOLEN!?" Sanji was furious, but Zoro didn't really care, he found a foothold and shimmied a little closer to the book, contemplating if the crumbling ledge would hold his weight.

"YOU GOT IT BACK AND DIDN'T TELL ME!?" Sanji was screaming, his grip on Zoro's hand tight enough to hamper circulation. "YOU SHITTY BASTARD! I'VE BEEN FEELING BAD OVER NOTHING!?"

"No one asked for you to feel bad, idiot cook!" Zoro hissed back, reaching experimentally over to the book. It was much too far, he'd have to jump across and hope it held. The ledge he'd been clinging to before the cook got him off it collapsed, rocks landing besides the book and causing the floor to crumble further.

"Of course I'd feel bad!" Sanji kept yelling, his face red with anger and his knuckles white. "I lost it!"

Zoro felt Sanji's release the grip on his hand, the tingle of blood flow settling in as he clung to the edge. Sanji jumped over him, landing elegantly on a creaking and swaying pillar not too far from the book. Sand and debris rained from the walls around them, hitting the book and threatening to send it plummeting down into the darkness.

"Oi! Cook! Leave it!" Zoro urged, watching as a web of cracks climbed from the center of Sanji's pillar. The cook didn't listen, reaching over for the book. The pillar was crumbling now and so was Zoro's handhold.

This was bad…they'd both fall at this rate. "Just leave the book! Grab my hand and let's get out of here!" Zoro extended his hand hopefully, the rapidly crumbling handhold cutting into the base of his palm.

"N-no way." Sanji hissed and ignored Zoro's hand, the tip of his middle finger gracing the book. "If it's that important to you, there's no way I can just let it fall!" The pillar under Sanji crumbled when the cook managed to grab the book, turning in the air as he extended the book towards Zoro's outstretched hand. "GRAB IT!"

"IDIOT! WHO ASKED YOU TO-" The edge Zoro was holding onto crumbled and he didn't even attempt to stop his fall. The duo fell through several floors, shattering the stone into dust with each impact. The small window of moonlight became more distant with each second until an especially harsh impact blurred Zoro's vision. They weren't falling anymore.

Zoro attempted to move his arm, nothing felt broken, but he couldn't move properly either. Sanji lay sprawled in debris next to him, clutching onto the book. He seemed to be unconscious, his chest rising in long, deep breaths. Zoro attempted to call out, but all the sound he could make was a pained groan.

Everything was getting darker; he was loosing consciousness. Hopefully he wouldn't be knocked out for long. When Zoro was about to pass out in this crumbling, giant-spider infested temple, his last thought before he passed out was a concerned one.

**Damn it. The cook has the book.**

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Yes. Innuendos. I love them. Can you tell?

Hope this chapter gave you a few laughs! I'd love to know what you liked most about it, I think I have an idea what scene is the "fan favorite" in here, but I might be wrong about it.

Special thanks go to A3shFaerie for being my trusty beta! She beta'd this chapter in less than 24 hours! Imagine that!

Thanks to her, I'll manage to upload this BEFORE I go on that camping trip. I can't wait to read your hilarious and inspiring reviews when I return!


	4. Meditation

**Chapter 4 – Meditation**

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_This chapter contains sexual content. Reader discretion advised._

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No one would believe Zoro if he told them it was possible to get used to waking up to the feel of rubble lodged into your back. He'd never had a problem sleeping through natural disasters or a severe injury, but waking up with a brick wedged into his shoulder blade never failed to make him groan.

He moved slightly, dislodging the piece of ancient ruin from his body before patting himself down for major injuries. His head was throbbing, but there wasn't any blood oozing from it and nothing seemed to be broken; Chopper would be pleased. At least he would be spared those annoying bandages.

It took a few confused blinks to clear Zoro's vision. The blurry environment slowly seeped into focus as he sat up. Debris and dust crumbled off his body like miniature landslides as he shook his head. The throbbing was subsiding; if he had a concussion it was minor.

They seemed to be in the same spot they had landed in, the multiple levels they had fallen through surrounding the distant opening to the surface. The sky was still dark so it didn't seem like they had been knocked out for long. Or maybe they had been knocked out for a full day.

The soft sound of paper caught Zoro's attention and the swordsman spun around in the crater he was sitting in. Sanji was sitting not too far away, facing away from him and hunched over. Zoro's blood ran cold when he realized what the blond was doing.

He was reading the book.

The smoke from Sanji's cigarette wafted through the cold, still air. The blond didn't touch or service his cigarette; the only movement and sound in the temple was the occasional flipping of old pages.

Zoro watched, uncertain if the cook's body language was tense in anger or excitement. The silence seemed to stretch on forever until the book clapped shut between Sanji's fingers.

Zoro tensed up on the spot, holding his breath as the cook turned around. His expression was dark and completely serious. It was much too hard to read Sanji's body language; it was like the blond was struggling to keep himself under control.

"Zoro." Sanji's tone was so plain and monotone Zoro was taken aback. He'd never heard the cook use his name in such a dull tone of voice. "Who's this book for?"

Zoro swallowed thickly, trying to read Sanji's expression. The blond seemed to be staring right into his soul. He wasn't sure he'd be able to fool him if he lied.

"I got it for you." Zoro decided to tell the truth.

Something dark flashed across Sanji's face for a second. Zoro wasn't sure what it had been; he'd never seen it before. The words hung in the air, seeming to linger for an eternity before Sanji spoke.

"Why?"

This was the question Zoro had been lingering on. The real reason he hadn't wanted to give the blond the book himself. He didn't know why. He just knew that this book was somehow related to Sanji's dream, so he wanted him to have it. Why it had consumed him so much, why he had been so concerned about it, was still a mystery.

"Because it's about-"

"I know what it's about." Sanji interrupted, he hadn't raised his voice, but it still managed to overpower Zoro's. "I want to know why you did this." Sanji's hand trembled slightly, his knuckles whitening around the spine of the book.

"Because I felt like it." Zoro grimaced; it was the best he could come up with.

He expected Sanji to frown at him or tell him he was an idiot, but when he made eye contact with the man standing a short distance away, he froze.

Sanji was absolutely livid.

"YOU SHITTY BASTARD!" Sanji screamed, his voice echoing through the temple and bouncing off the walls.

Zoro barely managed to raise his sword to block before Sanji's leg hit him in the chest, sending him flying backwards and tumbling over rocks littering the temple floor.

"OI! COOK! WHAT ARE YOU-"

"SHUT UP." Sanji ran for him again, sending a barrage of kicks Zoro would never have been able to block if he wasn't used to sparring with the blond. "WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS TO ME!?"

"DOING WHAT?!" Zoro pushed Sanji back, sending the furious blond flying across the temple. "I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING!"

Sanji didn't seem to agree, kicking massive moss covered boulders at him like they were pillows. Zoro barely managed to slice them up before they reached him; each piece hitting the wall behind him and causing the temple to tremble ominously.

"YOU HORRIBLY INSENSITIVE, TACTLESS, IGNORANT, SHITTY BASTARD!" Sanji's voice was breaking, the pitch rising and dropping as the blond swung his leg through the air at borderline terminal velocity. He aimed for Zoro's head but connected with his forearm instead.

Zoro's feet sunk into the ground as the kick pushed him backwards and he used the opportunity to grab Sanji's ankle. "I DON'T KNOW WHAT I DID!" Zoro yelled.

This was worse than he'd thought; the blond was acting utterly insane. He wasn't himself!

"I KNOW YOU DON'T!" Sanji hissed, swinging his leg over and sending Zoro flying across the chamber where he was imbedded deep into the stone. "YOU DON'T KNOW ANYTHING! YOU ARE TORTURING ME!"

Zoro gasped as he fell out the wall, coughing from the impact. He didn't want to use his swords on Sanji; the cook wasn't acting like himself. He was probably sick and something was messing with his brain. It didn't change the fact that he couldn't fight the blond unarmed like this.

"Torture? I'm not torturing you!" Zoro spat out, cracking his neck as he drew his second sword.

Back of the blades of course. He didn't want to kill the cook.

"YOU ARE SUCH A ROTTEN BASTARD!" Sanji hissed, his face contorting with anger. "STOP BEING LIKE THIS, DOING THESE SHITTY THINGS!" The blond was running for Zoro now, malice in his posture.

Zoro couldn't recall a single marine who had angered Sanji like this and had left with no bones broken.

"WHAT THINGS!?" Zoro yelled back, blocking Sanji's kick as the blond jumped into the air and flipped over for a drop kick.

Sanji's ankle pushed Zoro's swords down, leaving less than a finger width between the heel of Sanji's fancy dress shoes and Zoro's face.

"YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW HARD IT IS TO FAKE THIS! TO PRETEND LIKE THIS! TO WANT SOMETHING I CAN'T HAVE!" Sanji kicked away, landing out of kicking range and trembling with anger.

They were standing across from each other now, screaming like children.

"What?! What is it you can't have?!" Zoro yelled back, he didn't deserve this shit. Forget ever doing anything nice for the cook again. "The All Blue is out there!" Zoro screamed, pointing to the book with Wado, "YOU ARE HOLDING PROOF RIGHT NOW!"

"SHUT UP! I'M NOT TALKING ABOUT THE ALL BLUE!" Sanji howled and ran a frustrated hand through his tousled golden hair. "YOU'RE DOING IT RIGHT NOW! WHEN YOU DO SHITTY THINGS LIKE THIS, THE PAIN GETS UNBERABLE!"

Zoro perked up at that, lowering his swords cautiously. "Pain? Are you feeling sick?"

"I'm NOT feeling sick you ignorant, half-brained, idiotic, BASTARD Marimo!" Sanji hissed, his voice dropping in pitch as he covered his face with a trembling hand. "You don't have any idea... none."

"I actually do." Zoro offered, sheathing one of his swords. "I've been feeling strange too lately. My chest has been fluttery and it's like there's something thrashing around in my guts. It mostly happens around you though-"

Sanji looked up at that, the anger was gone from his expression and he was staring at Zoro in disbelief. The one visible eye wide as it stared at him through slightly parted fingers. Zoro could see the cook pale on the spot.

"-So you should calm down. Chopper will figure out what we've got. It's probably something easily cured, I don't think it's painful like you do, there's just this warm and tense sensation in-" Zoro paused as Sanji started moving, the entire temple seemed to echo Sanji's loud, purposeful footsteps.

Sanji was storming at him again, taking large determined strides with a completely deadpan expression. His shoulders were tense as the blond spit out his cigarette and dropped the book onto a nearby boulder when he'd crossed half the gap between them. Zoro raised Wado, putting it between them as he anticipated Sanji's attack.

There was no kick. Sanji strolled right up into Zoro's personal space, pushing the Wado out of the way dismissively, with a firm hand on Zoro's wrist. During the hundreds, if not thousands, of arguments and fights they'd had Sanji had never once used his hands. Zoro hadn't been expecting it in the slightest, so the sudden yank on his shirt collar and the other man's lips on his own caught him completely off guard.

That aching feeling in Zoro's chest returned as he felt Sanji's tongue slide along his lips, begging for entry. For a moment Zoro was frozen in shock, not sure what to do with this sudden turn of events. Sanji was kissing him. KISSING him. Sanji's arm flung around his neck, pulling him closer as the cook's teeth ghosted over Zoro's bottom lip.

Suddenly it all made sense. All those emotions and desires Zoro had spent years meditating away. All those thoughts and instincts he'd categorized as unnecessary and troublesome burst free, flooding his mind and consuming him whole.

He slid Wado back into it's home, parting his lips and smirking at the almost shocked gasp the cook made against his mouth when he met Sanji's tongue with his own. The aching feeling faded, the tension unwound and Zoro finally understood why.

He wanted the cook. He had wanted him, for a long time. He'd spent years meditating to getting rid of "pointless" thoughts like that. Telling himself again and again that he didn't have time for these things if he was going to become the best. So, naturally, he hadn't noticed when he fell for the blond.

He'd been smothering his instinct, locking up the need and desire for so long he'd forgotten how it felt to WANT a person this way. He simply hadn't recognized it. He wasn't sick at all, his body was telling him what his mind was trained to ignore. It was all so obvious now. Zoro brought a hand up to Sanji's face, running his thumb along his jaw as he savored the moment.

Sanji's mouth tasted like tobacco and spices. He could feel Sanji's fingers pulling at his shirt as the blond tilted his head, groaning low into Zoro's mouth in appreciation. The swordsman decided to embrace his newly rediscovered instinct; running his fingers through Sanji's hair like he'd done before.

This time it felt much better, thick golden strands like silk between his fingers as he gently clawed at the cook's scalp, tugging softly like he had before. Sanji groaned at the touch, his hand slipping from Zoro's back to his shoulder, pushing him away as they caught their breath.

"Bastard." Sanji groaned, his voice slightly husky with need and strain from screaming before. "Where the hell did that come from?"

"Sorry." Zoro rumbled, licking longingly at Sanji's lips as he slipped a hand around his waist. "I forgot."

"FORGOT?" Sanji arched away from Zoro, gritting his teeth when Zoro refused to let him go. "You can't just FORGET that you have these kind of emotions! How dense can you get!?"

The swordsman didn't bother answering and instead busied himself with biting at the cook's neck; sucking gently on his bite marks until the blond reluctantly gave in and relaxed into his touch.

"You're such a shitty bastard." Sanji mumbled into the top of Zoro's head as the swordsman kissed at his collarbone. Every inch of Sanji's skin was so warm and covered in a slight layer of sweat from their earlier fight. Zoro felt the familiar heat pool in his guts, but this time he embraced it. He knew what it was now.

"Hey, cook-" Zoro finally managed to croak, his excitement clogging up his throat and pooling in his groin. Zoro was torn between common sense and his arousal; the temple was crumbling and possibly full of spiders. This really was not the time nor place for this.

"This place is coming apart, maybe we-" Zoro grit his teeth when Sanji's hand snapped up and yanked at his cheek, pulling on the skin as Sanji frowned at him.

"Don't ask me to wait, Marimo bastard, I've waited long enough to last a lifetime…" Sanji huffed indignantly as Zoro pulled his cheek free from his grip with a yank of his head. "If this place can handle me kicking boulders around, I'm sure it can handle something like this." Sanji's finger trailed along the top of Zoro's scar.

"Think about it for a moment, love-cook. There could be spiders and-"

"Oi. Zoro." Sanji's forehead was resting on the swordsman's shoulder.

Zoro could barely hear the pained tone from between Sanji's grit teeth. Sanji's hand withdrew from his scar; wrapping both arms around Zoro's neck and hugging him close.

"Do you have any idea what you made me go through today, bastard?" Sanji's voice wasn't annoyed; it was soft, gentle, and almost pleading. "The shitty spiders, keeping my lighter, freeing me from the web, strutting around naked in the river like a damn pervert-" Sanji's voice broke into a slightly frustrated groan, "-and that book; the one you got specifically for me…"

Zoro sighed, wrapping his arms around Sanji's lower back to hug the blond back. He could feel his resolve utterly shatter at the slight squeeze Sanji was giving him. Sanji grit his teeth and pulled away, frowning at Zoro with his ears practically glowing bright red.

"Don't I deserve a little bit of consideration, idiot?" The cook grumbled, his frown growing to comical proportions as he avoided eye contact.

"Perverted cook…" Zoro pulled him back, trailing the side of Sanji's neck with long, wet kisses. He moved up to capture the cook's lips with his own. Excitement coursed through his veins when Sanji parted his lips without a second of hesitation. He should have seen this before. How long had the cook felt this way? How much time had they lost because of his ignorance?

It didn't matter, the past wasn't important. Right here and right now was important. He wrestled Sanji's tongue with his own, pulling at the back of Sanji's shirt as he tried to touch as much of the blond as he could. He yanked the hem of the shirt out of Sanji's pants, sliding his hands under the fabric and along the blonde's back.

Sanji's left arm was clutching at the back of Zoro's shirt, clawing at the skin underneath in long, desperate drags. Zoro grunted when Sanji's right hand skirted up his chest, fingers playing with his earrings before dragging down his jaw line and throat until they reached his chest again.

The trail of Sanji's touch lingered on Zoro's skin, fuelling his desire. Teeth clashed as the kiss became more frantic, neither willing to give in first. It was too warm. It felt like everywhere Sanji touched him was scorching hot. Zoro was about to break away to pull off his shirt when Sanji's hips pressed against his groin, wiping his mind completely blank at the sensation.

Zoro groaned. His heart was hammering in his chest; he didn't know what it could be pumping, since it felt like all the blood in his body was rushing southwards. He could feel Sanji chuckle against his mouth, he could taste the bastard's grin in the kiss. Sanji was rubbing against him like that on purpose!

Zoro's hands slid down the small of Sanji's back until they reached the back of his dirtied suit pants; giving his behind a vengeful squeeze. Sanji jerked against him with a hiss and a colorful string of curses. Now it was Zoro's turn to gloat, he could feel Sanji's arousal through his pants.

The heat forming between them was starting to become unbearable. There was too much clothing in the way. Zoro pulled back, reluctantly breaking the kiss. He yanked off his shirt, dragging it over his head before he tossed it carelessly aside. Once his shirt was off, he turned back to the annoyed looking blond.

"That's not fair, you bastard." Sanji groaned and stepped back into Zoro's personal space, "tempting me like this after blue-balling me for so long." Sanji grumbled under his breath, gently tracing the top of Zoro's scar with his finger, leaving a smoldering hot trail along the long-healed wound.

"I didn't mean to do any of that." Zoro rolled his eyes, reaching out to grab the front of Sanji's shirt "You should have just said something. How was I supposed to know?" Zoro started unbuttoning Sanji's shirt, mentally cursing every single button as he struggled to chase them back out their holes.

Sanji stepped closer, assisting him in undoing the multiple buttons. "How could I? You hadn't shown interest in anyone so I didn't even know which gender you preferred!" The blond argued, his aggravation audible in his tone. The buttons seemed to slip out of their prison effortlessly at the blonde's touch and what felt like an eternity later, Zoro could slip the fabric off Sanji's shoulders like he was unwrapping a present.

"I don't give a shit about gender." Zoro huffed and watched the curled eyebrow raise in disbelief. "Man or a woman doesn't matter to me. An attractive person is always attractive." Zoro said with finality and tossed Sanji's shirt over his shoulder.

Just in case the blond was about to order him to go and pick up the shirt, Zoro distracted him with a kiss. Sanji pulled him forward possessively. Soft fingertips sank into Zoro's upper arms and left hot trails on his skin when Sanji dragged his nails down his torso and slipped his hands into Zoro's haramaki.

Zoro groaned and pulled the cook closer. Every inch of skin that wasn't pressed against Sanji's felt cold and dead. He could feel the blonde's hands stroke over his hips and lowest set of abs, the tips of his fingers teasing the hem of his pants.

"Hmnn…. Zoro…" Sanji panted against his mouth.

Zoro's skin started crawling with pleasure at the husky growl Sanji's voice had evolved into. There was a long, deliberate grind against his groin, causing the swordsman to hiss in pain and grit his teeth.

Sanji kissed at the side of Zoro's jaw, his tongue ghosting over and playing with his earrings. Zoro thought his head was going to explode when Sanji's lips brushed against his ear, hot breath lingering against his earlobe.

"The oil is in my pants pocket, just like before." Sanji practically moaned into his ear, sending shudders through Zoro's entire body and causing the hair at the back of his head to bristle.

Arousal strained painfully against Zoro's pants as he struggled to control his breathing. "If you have time to tell me where it is-" Zoro grumbled, looking down to Sanji's hips and sliding a hand clumsily into his pocket, "-then get it yourself, idiot cook."

Just like before, the pants were tight around the blonde's thigh, hot skin under the fabric twitching against Zoro's fingers as he slid his hand toward the bottle. Sanji's hands were smaller than his, why didn't the blond get the bottle himself?

Sanji's lips lingered on Zoro's neck as the swordsman tried to maneuver his hand down into Sanji's pocket. Soft sounds of approval rolled off Sanji's tongue when Zoro finally managed to reach the bottom of Sanji's pocket, fingers fumbling for the cork on the glass bottle. Sanji buckled slightly against Zoro, causing the swordsman to groan when the coarse fabric rubbed against him.

When the white hot flash of arousal faded and the world returned around them, Zoro pulled the bottle from Sanji's pocket with a long drag against Sanji's clothed erection, just like he had obliviously done before. Sanji smirked against his jaw as he pulled back, eyeing the bottle Zoro was holding at eye level.

"How's this going to be? Do you want to bottom?" Zoro asked casually, swirling the remaining oil around in the bottle. Sanji's face turned red and the blond scowled as he turned away with an embarrassed huff.

"Bastard! Don't ask me that while making such a serious face!" Sanji groaned, biting his lower lip as he seemed to be contemplating something. Eventually he came to a conclusion and let out a long sigh. "Yes. I… I… prefer it actually. When I'm with men that is-" Sanji eventually managed to groan out. He turned to Zoro with a glare; daring him to laugh.

"Is that a PROBLEM, Marimo?"

"No. Not at all." Zoro assured Sanji with a hasty kiss to the blonde's lips, attempting to claim his tongue when Sanji pushed him back as far as their embrace allowed. Zoro pouted, glaring at the cook who was narrowing his eyes at Zoro.

"It doesn't make me less of a man either." Sanji challenged, lips glistening with saliva and breath heavy with want. Zoro gave Sanji's backside a reassuring squeeze; there was nothing he could think of that would make Sanji less of a man to him.

"Of course it doesn't." Zoro agreed, he himself had tried both and it didn't make him any less of a man as far as he knew.

"Stop agreeing with me." Sanji grumbled, easing back into the kiss, their lips barely brushing as he spoke. "It's annoying."

"Alright." Zoro agreed with a teasing grin, claiming Sanji's lips with his own as he started tugging on the front of the cook's pants, popping the button before he slipped down the zipper. He loved annoying the cook.

"You're such a shitty-bastard." Sanji groaned against Zoro's collarbone as the swordsman undid his pants and pulled his underwear off his hips in one smooth motion. Sanji immediately slipped out of his shoes, leaning against Zoro for a second as he kicked his pants aside eagerly.

Zoro groaned as he took in the view, burning it forever into his memory; Sanji kicking off his clothes and shoes carelessly, face reddened slightly with arousal as he stood completely naked in front of him. Had there ever been anything more perfect?

"I'm not going to be the only one naked here." Sanji declared with slight annoyance in his tone, pulling at Zoro's haramaki demandingly. It was all the motivation Zoro needed to snap out of his trance. He managed to keep his senses about him for long enough to kick off his boots and pull down his haramaki as Sanji kissed him eagerly.

Zoro could hear the fly of his pants yank open as he felt Sanji's lean fingers slip down the front of his pants, rubbing at the base of his erection teasingly. Adrenaline was coursing through Zoro's veins, boiling in his blood as he slid his own calloused fingers over Sanji's hips, enjoying the feeling of soft, forbidden skin as his fingers trailed lower.

The kiss got more passionate as they teased each other, silently competing who would give into temptation first as they groaned against each other's mouth. Zoro had never been this hard in his entire life, he was aching for Sanji, even if he had him at the tip of his fingers and could taste him in his own mouth. He wanted more.

It was almost as if the cook could read his mind, he pulled back slightly looking at him with that strange, dark expression that Zoro hadn't been able to decipher before. Sanji took hold of Zoro's hand, licking up the length of one of his fingers in a long, erotic motion. The blond kept eye contact the entire time. The swordsman stared captivated at the blond; the feeling of Sanji's tongue slicking up his finger going straight to his groin.

For once, Zoro gave in, pulling away with a shaky groan as he discarded his pants, tossing them aside before pulling the cork from the small glass bottle with his teeth. The cork squeaked and gave in with a satisfying 'pop'. Zoro spit it out on the ground besides the pile of clothes. Sanji's mouth withdrew from Zoro's hand, his one visible eye following the movements of Zoro's fingers when he coated them in oil.

When his fingers were properly slicked up with saliva and oil, Zoro's hand slid down to Sanji's backside, earning a small hiss from the blond as he slid a finger along the tight entrance. Sanji's fingers sank into his shoulders, the blond groaned against his neck appreciatively, but Zoro couldn't move.

"Oi… Cook… How am I supposed to get inside if you don't relax?" Zoro rumbled into Sanji's ear, causing the blond to grind against him vindictively.

Zoro could feel Sanji's arousal twitch between them, rubbing against his own as Sanji tried to ease onto his hand.

"It's easier if we're laying down." Zoro whispered, making sure his lips barely brushed against Sanji's ear as he practically mouthed every word.

With no further ado, Zoro took a firm hold of Sanji's behind, hoisting him up so the cook towered over him. Zoro licked at Sanji's collarbone and neck, enjoying the feeling of soft breathing on the top of his head and Sanji's hot arousal against his stomach.

Zoro got down on his knees, pulling some of their discarded clothes into a pile before he lowered Sanji down onto them. They sealed the new position with a sloppy kiss, both men rapidly running out of patience. Sanji's legs parted as he arched his back, presenting his body eagerly to Zoro who took him up on his offer.

Zoro's finger slid inside much easier in this position, the slight resistance of the cook's body eased as he adjusted to the foreign object inside him. The heat was unbearable, Zoro was already dripping with anticipation, gritting his teeth as he worked his finger along the cook's insides until he was ready for another finger.

Sanji's head rolled back when Zoro added the second digit, his eyes were closed and his back arched slightly to allow Zoro to move his hand easier. Sanji's lips were just barely parted, heavy breaths and soft moans slipping from between them and condensing in the cold night air.

Zoro parted his fingers, grinning when he felt Sanji's body give into his ministrations. He was trying his hardest to contain himself; he didn't want to piss the cook off now. The swordsman bit his own tongue, his hand twitching slightly as he slid his parted fingers deeper into the blond.

"AH!" Sanji's entire body jerked slightly and the cook instantly grabbed his own mouth in an attempt to suffocate the long and carnal moan that slipped through his fingers. Zoro froze, feeling the cook's body tremble around his digits. That sound shattered what little remained of Zoro's self control, but Sanji's flustered expression and arched back was too much.

Zoro pulled out his fingers, grabbing the bottle of oil and slicking himself up, hissing at the feeling of cold oil on his skin. Sanji had let go of his mouth, relaxing into the pile of clothes as he watched Zoro prepare up with lust-darkened eyes. Neither of them spoke a word as Zoro positioned himself between Sanji's long pale legs.

There was something so erotic about being allowed between them; these legs that could break chains and boulders with one hit. Zoro ran a hand along the inside of Sanji's thigh before lining himself up with his entrance. Looking up at the blond as if to make sure there wasn't any doubt in his face.

Sanji's half parted lips were slick with saliva and his skin was glistening with a slight layer of sweat, the lean fingers were buried almost desperately in the pile of fabric. Zoro could feel the cook's heel nudging against his back encouragingly, the very same heel that had shattered a boulder less than an hour ago.

Zoro couldn't hold back a long, guttural grunt as he slid inside, feeling the tightness around him pull at his sanity. It was so warm and slick Zoro could barely believe it, he slid inside slowly, marveling at each inch that disappeared into Sanji's body. His heart was beating madly against his ribcage as he leaned over the blond to enjoy the utterly sinful expression the other man was making.

Zoro thrust the final inch inside, pausing to adjust once he was fully seated. Sanji hissed in pleasure, gritting his teeth and tossing his head back as they both panted heavily. Zoro groaned and ran a finger along the valley of Sanji's stomach, flicking his nipple as he kissed him passionately.

The kiss was frantic and sloppy, neither of them bothering to take turns as they groaned against each other's lips. Sanji was urging him to move, drawing his nails over his back and moving his hips sensually against Zoro's waist. Sanji might be ready to continue, but Zoro wasn't sure he could move without coming right then and there.

The kiss dragged on for a few seconds as Zoro regained control over his newly rediscovered sex drive. He wanted this to last; he had his pride to think of. Eventually the almost painful tension at the base of his spine subsided slightly and Zoro tested the waters with a slight grind into Sanji's hips.

The cook's back arched and Sanji let out the most erotic groan Zoro had ever heard. Shivers crawled up Zoro's spine at the sound and the twitch of Sanji's body threatened to send him over the edge right there. Zoro paused, taking a deep breath as he sucked and nibbled at the nape of Sanji's neck.

He pulled halfway out, thrusting inside again and pausing to regain his control while Sanji hissed in approval. Zoro called upon his obscene amount of self-control as he slowly quickened the pace, groaning in pleasure with each thrust. Zoro had always enjoyed how vocal the cook was in general, and Sanji's commanding and desperate tone as he barked half-moaned demands was no exception.

"T-that's so close… Just a little more…" Sanji urged, his long legs wrapped tightly around the swordsman's waist. "Ah! Yes… Right there… more… agahhhhn…" Sanji's demands dissolved into a long, guttural moan as Zoro rubbed against the spot he'd found earlier with each thrust.

"Cook…" Zoro grunted, nibbling on the top of Sanji's jaw line as his self control started slipping. He clung onto the blond like he was falling, feeling Sanji's body tighten and twitch around him each time he jerked against him. He felt like the pleasure was pulling him apart at the seams, he wasn't sure what groans were his own and which of them were Sanji's.

"Z…Zoro…" Sanji was clawing at Zoro's back desperately, groaning low into Zoro's ear. "F…fuck… This…. is…. good…." Sanji's head fell back with a loud moan as Zoro licked at the exposed neck. Both of them teetering at the brink of orgasm as they silently competed who could hold on the longest.

Zoro wanted to come. He felt like he was bursting, the pleasure was burning him up inside and his vision was starting to blur. He wanted to come so bad… But not yet, not until the cook came as well. It wasn't long now; he could hear it in Sanji's breathing. Each breath dissolved into a moan, slowly rising in pitch and becoming more urgent. He only had a few thrusts to go, a few wonderfully hot, tight thrusts.

"Cook…" Zoro growled low and urgently, trying to keep the almost desperate tone out of his voice. "Cook… you feel… so good…" Zoro confessed, his shaky breath dancing across Sanji's sweaty skin. The cook's flexibility, the tousled golden hair, and inhumanly erotic sounds captivated Zoro completely. The swordsman could barely suppress a moan at the view.

The cook gave him an unsteady glance, a pleasure glazed eye meeting his. Zoro's brow furrowed as he stared back, watching Sanji's body jolt beneath him. How could anything be as perfect as the blond was right now? Sanji's hand slid up Zoro's sweat-streaked back and buried it in the back of the green head and fisted his hair.

"Zoro… you…" Sanji hissed as he buckled against Zoro, his voice breaking into a cry of ecstasy as he came between them with an incredible arch of his back. Sanji's body tightened around Zoro, the swordsman's vision flashed white with pleasure as he came with a shudder and a loud groan.

Both men rode out their orgasm clinging to the other, panting loudly as they finally settled into the afterglow. Listening to each other's gasping breaths and impatiently waiting for the moment they could speak. Zoro's heart was racing in his chest; the pleasure was coursing through his veins and he could barely move.

Sanji pulled Zoro closer, kissing him gently on the mouth. "Oi… Marimo." Sanji mumbled against Zoro's mouth, their foreheads touching as Zoro tried to find the words to describe what just happened.

"Hmmm?" It was the best Zoro could manage at this point.

"My pants are over there." Sanji relaxed back into the pile, gesturing over to the side with a trembling hand. "I need a smoke."

Zoro rolled his eyes, leaning over to pull the black pants over to them. Sanji snatched the packet of cigarettes and lighter from the confines of the fabric, lighting up with the most content groan Zoro had ever heard. Zoro pulled out, laying down besides Sanji and watching the smoke from the blonde's cigarette snake through the air above them.

"For someone who does nothing but sculpt this body and suppress his emotions all day, that was really good." Sanji groaned, flicking the ashes off his cigarette and rolling onto his side to watch Zoro.

The swordsman had his eyes closed contently, a soft smile curling his lips as he waited for the afterglow to pass.

"Good?" Zoro arched a brow, but kept his eyes closed, listening to Sanji playing with his earrings idly. "I'd say it was a little better than that. You were 'really good' yourself."

There was a slight shuffle when Sanji sat up. Zoro opened his eyes lazily to watch the blond lean over him to reach for the book, return besides him, reclining on the floor and opening the book at the center to look at the large, faded words on top: 'All Blue'.

Zoro watched Sanji's fingers trace the outline of the letters, curiosity rising as the high of orgasm faded.

"What does it say?" Zoro raised his head, wrapping an arm around Sanji's waist and moving a little closer to rest his head on the cook's sweat stained chest.

"I knew you were unable to read." Sanji teased, leaning a little closer to Zoro, resting an arm on his shoulder and playing with his green hair lazily.

"I can read." Zoro huffed, frowning as he leaned over to read the first paragraph. "Stop being an idiot and describe it to me, curly-brow."

Sanji hummed in approval, grinning as he ran a thumb over the center of the opening. "It's located somewhere on the grand line, the All Blue. Big and vast, colored a shimmering blue. It's full of fish from all the oceans. That captain Belon guy describes so many different kinds. Some of these fish I've never seen myself."

"I can't wait to eat them." Zoro grinned, sitting up and cracking his neck loudly. Sanji was beaming at him, his grin was so large Zoro could swear it rivaled Luffy's; his heart skipped a beat at the sight. Zoro reached for his pants, pulling them on before he started looking for his boots.

"Just you wait!" Sanji laughed, placing the book besides them as he slipped his underwear and black suit pants on in what seemed to be the blink of an eye. "I'm going to cook so much you're all going to pass out. Even Luffy."

"Those are some pretty big words." Zoro stood up, offering his hand to the blond who took it absent-mindedly and stood up as he shook the gravel from his shirt. "You better remember them when we get there." Zoro watched as Sanji's fingers nimbly tucked each button into their respective holes; doing up his shirt lightening fast.

Zoro pulled on his shirt and haramaki, tying his swords to his hip as Sanji slipped on his shoes. The blond tucked the book under his arm; crushing the remains of his after sex cigarette under his foot before joining Zoro at the gaping black void that seemed to be some sort of ancient hallway.

"We're not going to be able to go back the way we came." Zoro reasoned as they both glanced back to the crumbling ceiling.

Surely, even if they jumped from floor to floor or climbed the ancient staircases, the ceiling wouldn't support their weight.

"For once you seem to be choosing the right way." Sanji grinned, collecting a dry dead root from the temple floor. "I guess even a broken clock is right twice a day."

Zoro watched as the blond splashed some of the remaining oil on it, lighting the end as a makeshift torch. The fire scared off the dark, enabling them to start their walk down the hallway safely.

"I think you'll have to buy a new oil bottle before we leave this island." Zoro gestured to the few remaining drops in the bottle. The flame of the torch smelled like magnolia. Zoro sighed, he was never going to be able to tend to his swords without remembering the feeling of Sanji clawing at his back or hearing the cook's carnal moans echo through his head.

Sharp swords kept by sharp mind, huh? It was going to take some serious meditation to block out the mental images of tonight's events.

"It's okay." Sanji said dismissively, lighting a new cigarette with the torch as they walked. "The oil was meant for you anyway." The cook's ears were reddening slightly and Zoro grinned at the sight of the blonde's embarrassment, "-As a thank you for letting me use yours the other day."

"It's the same brand as my sword oil." Zoro mused, impressed by the cook's attention to detail. He plucked the bottle from Sanji's hand and examined it in the soft golden glow of the flame. "Well, technically, I used it. So you succeeded."

Sanji squirmed slightly, grimacing at him as they walked. "I didn't mean for you to use it on THAT sword though." The cook mumbled and Zoro couldn't help but let out a loud laugh. It echoed down the hallway, distorting the sound until it sounded like someone further down the hall was mocking them.

Both men fell silent, waiting for the creepy echo to die down in the hallway around them. The fire crackled and snapped on the root, adding to the eerie atmosphere. Their footsteps bounced off the wall, and Zoro was content in knowing that the odds of something sneaking up on them with all sound amplified like that were slim to none.

"Do you think there are spiders in this place?" Sanji almost whispered, leaning closer to Zoro to minimize the echo. The blond looked anxious, Zoro supposed that 'lie' Usopp had told him about Sanji's spider phobia hadn't been a lie after all.

"Probably. This is further down than the tunnel was, I think." Zoro mumbled as low as he could and glanced upwards, looking at the crumbling mossy ceiling.

The cracks snaked along the carvings, dissolving into dust at the mere look. If the ceiling caved in on them, they were dead. No chances of cutting open a hole here like back in the tunnel.

"Don't even THINK about attacking the ceiling moss-brain." Sanji hissed, grabbing Zoro's wrist and pulling his hand away from his swords. "We'll get out of here WITHOUT the entire thing caving in." Sanji didn't let go of Zoro's hand though, thin fingers clasping Zoro's wrist affectionately.

"I'm not stupid, I know what I can and can't attack." Zoro grimaced, eyeing Sanji's strange handhold curiously. "So Usopp wasn't lying when he said you were scared of spiders?"

"Shut up. I'm not SCARED of them. They are just… hairy and disgusting." Sanji grumbled, pulling Zoro by the wrist as he avoided eye contact. "You, Usopp, and everyone else on the crew might have grown up on an island, but I grew up on the sea. Not many spiders there."

"So… do you shriek or something when you see them?" Zoro asked, grinning when the blond swung the torch for his head.

"I DON'T 'SHRIEK', MARIMO!" The blonde's face was red and he was grimacing around his cigarette.

Zoro laughed at that, causing the blond to swing the torch for him again. The torch hit a column, bouncing out of Sanji's hand and rolling on the floor before them. The fire crackled and Zoro crouched to pick it up before they set the entire temple on fire.

The column Sanji had struck divided the hallway into two smaller paths: a fork in the road. Sanji reached out and grabbed Zoro's wrist again, pulling him a little closer. "Don't you DARE get lost, Marimo."

"I don't get lost!" Zoro huffed indignantly, reaching the torch out to illuminate each path. The darkness seemed to eat up the light."They look identical," Zoro added after a moment of silence, turning to the blond who didn't seem inclined to let go of his wrist.

Zoro didn't mind it, but Sanji's embarrassment over the whole thing was hilarious.

Sanji serviced his cigarette with his free hand, examining each hallway opening carefully. "There is SOME difference." Sanji let go of Zoro's wrist to take a few steps into the hallways to the right, listening closely.

Zoro did the same, joining the blond at the mouth of the hallway and holding his breath.

"That's just an echo, cook." Zoro grumbled when he heard the soft clattering noise. Sanji silenced him with a hand to his mouth, concentration furrowing his curled brow. The noises continued though, soft murmurs of distant voices, even if the two of them were completely silent.

"There are people in here." Sanji's hand slipped down to Zoro's shoulder, where it tugged on his collar. "Come on. They might know the way out." Sanji started walking again, pausing to wait for Zoro who was still standing at the mouth of the hallway. "Don't you DARE get lost in here."

"I'm NOT getting LOST." Zoro huffed, walking up to Sanji's side and raising the torch to illuminate their path as they walked side by side. The echo of voices was growing louder with each step, occasional sharp metallic sound breaking up the murmurs. He had a bad feeling about this.

There were definitely people in here; but what kind of people?

* * *

**Chapter 4 - END**

Special thanks go to A3shFaerie for her beta-ing skills!

Thank you all for the support so far! I hope you'll stick around until the end!

Anything you particularly liked? Anything that made you laugh? I'd love to hear what it was!


	5. Resolve

**Chapter 5 - Resolve**

* * *

The murmurs of distant voices that echoed down the hallway were keeping Zoro on edge. He was holding the torch out in front of them like he would a sword, staring forward into the black void before them. His other hand was resting on his swords, thumb pressing against the hand guard of Wado, ready to draw at any moment.

If these people were hostile, then it would be a fight. A fight that they weren't sure they would win. They couldn't use their full strength in here without the whole temple coming down and they had no idea how many enemies there were.

"I don't think they know about this hallway, so it must be hidden or something." Sanji started, his voice low enough to almost cancel out all echo. Zoro turned to the cook who gestured to the floor with his cigarette. "There's no footprints here, just dust. If these people are hostile, we'll have plenty of time to figure out a plan."

Zoro glanced down at the floor, the crumbling stone was indeed covered in dust and multiple roots that snaked over the surface. Zoro's shoulders eased and his thumb left the hand guard. Sanji was right. In the privacy of his own head, Zoro had to admit that Sanji usually was. When it came to things like this at least.

"Take care not to lose the book." Zoro looked at the worn and battered journal tucked under Sanji's arm. " It's like it's alive or something; that thing gets lost all the time. "

Sanji grinned, placing a hand on Zoro's shoulder. "Alright, I'll hold on tightly."

"I don't get lost!" Zoro huffed, blush crawling up his face. "I was talking about the book, curly-brow!" Zoro shrugged Sanji's hand off his shoulder, cheeks burning as the blond laughed at him. Sanji's happy expression was so genuine Zoro's chest tightened as they walked side by side, their shoulders brushing together.

"Are you going to continue fluttering around Nami and Robin like some sort of idiot?" Zoro didn't look at Sanji as he asked, trying to get rid of the heat in his cheeks.

"Any reason I shouldn't?" Sanji asked with a teasing smirk. Zoro could feel his shoulders bump into his deliberately.

"It... annoys me." Zoro mumbled, before tonight he hadn't understood why the cook's constant fawning over women got on his nerves as badly as it did.

"Are you jealous, Marimo?" Sanji leered, wrapping an arm around Zoro's shoulders and nudging him teasingly. Zoro's face flushed from his cheeks all the way up to his green hair.

"I'm not jealous!" Zoro hissed as loudly as he could without causing an echo. "If you started treating me like you treat them, I'd kill you!"

"That's not what I mean..." Sanji smiled, finger brushing against Zoro's chin. "They are lovely delicate flowers who deserve to be pampered after having been treated badly in their pasts. You're a big tough brute that's determined to lose as much blood as possible in every battle he gets into. "

"I don't TRY to lose blood." Zoro grumbled, "And you can keep acting like an idiot for all I care. I'm not jealous. Perverted cook."

"ohhh... is that so?" Sanji mused, sly grin on his face as he withdrew. Zoro was about to argue that yes, in fact, that was so, when they saw a faint light at the end of the hallway. Sadly it couldn't be daylight, since it was probably still just after midnight.

He gestured towards the light with the torch, arching a brow as he placed a hand on his swords again. "Should I put out the torch?" Zoro whispered, the low rumble barely bouncing of the wall.

Sanji nodded once, raising his hand and holding up a long pale finger, he tapped his cigarette and then nodded silently to the end of the hallway.

"Not just yet, when I finish this cigarette." The blond muttered under his breath, voice soft as they both walked as soundlessly as possible to the end of the hallway.

The opening of the hallway was more like a window in a giant wall. The floor simply ended, the hallway had probably led to a chamber, but said chamber crumbled away ages ago, taking the floors below with them.

The chamber was at least ten Sunny-Go's high; walls surrounded with debris and ledges that had once connected each layer of the chamber with a staircase.

There was a large fire in the center of the temple, smoke snaking out and funneling out through tunnels above their own.

"We can't climb up here." Sanji pointed to the ceiling, their voices no longer echoing now that they were in the main chamber, "The ceiling is full of smoke, even if we somehow manage to climb up there, we'd die."

"Then we have to find out how these people got here." Zoro gestured to the distant outlines of humans, at least two floors below them.

Sanji crouched, leaning over the edge to inspect the people that trudged back and forth from tunnel to tunnel dragging something behind them.

"Then we need to get down." The blond pulled his shirt sleeves up slightly, tucking the book inside his shirt before grabbing hold of the edge and jumping down to a small broken ledge. "If we stick to the ones closest to the wall, it might hold."

"I don't even trust the walls to hold." Zoro mumbled under his breath, making his way down the crumbling ledges. The cook was lighter than him, so he couldn't trust the same spots to hold. Slowly the two men made their way down, shushing each other and pausing occasionally to hold their breath when a part of the ledges they stood on crumbled.

"How far down do you think we are?" Sanji eventually whispered, climbing down a few roots.

Zoro grimaced as he thought about it. They'd fallen quite a distance before, now they had climbed a few ship-heights down and the ground was just a jump away.

"Hard to tell. Not too terribly deep; we were climbing a temple on a hill, remember?" Zoro dropped down, landing crouched and grabbing his swords to prevent them from clattering.

Sanji gave a slight nod, landing on his toes next to Zoro like gravity was none of his concern.

The duo made their way past heaps of dirt and gravel, the flickering light of the large campfire casting long, dark shadows that were convenient to hide in.

The shapes they had seen from above seemed to be perfectly normal humans. They looked tired, though, dragging large carts with slow, slaving movements.

As far as Zoro could see, they were transporting dirt from the tunnels to the center of the chamber. In other words: the people didn't look like a threat at all.

"We can take all of them." Zoro said from their hiding place behind a large statue.

Sanji frowned at him, firm finger on Zoro's mouth to signal him to keep silent. The swordsman kept talking, lips sliding against Sanji's finger as he spoke. "Let's just walk out there and ask them for the way out."

"Did you fuck your moss brain out?" Sanji hissed at Zoro, pinching the swordsman's lips shut. "We are underground, lost, outnumbered, and even if we asked these people we don't know if they would tell us the truth!"

"We can take the-"

"Shh... Zoro." Sanji hissed again, hand flat against the swordsman's mouth as a person dragging a large sack of dirt headed in their direction, "Let's snatch that one. We need information before we run out there."

Zoro grumbled, watching the slavish movements of the unlucky man who was heading their way with his load. "Fine."

He moved to the side, Sanji right beside him as they got closer to the broken wall next to the pile of dirt that was the man's destination.

The man grabbed the bottom of his bag, shaking dirt from it with trembling exhausted hands. He closed his eyes momentarily to protect them from the dust that flew into the air, unable to see the two pairs of hands that reached out for him. Suddenly there were massive hands on his mouth, and his arms were yanked up behind his back.

His feet were swept from under him and he was suspended in the air, staring down at the ground as he was carried behind a giant statue. He tried to scream out in surprise, but was unable to make a single sound. He fell backwards when he was let go, struggling to keep his balance before he fell and looked up at the blond man in front of him.

"Be quiet and he won't have to cut you up." Sanji said gently, falling smoothly into his "good cop" role as he gestured casually to Zoro.

The man's breathing came to an abrupt halt when the Wado's edge grazed his chin. His eyes travelled up the blade, resting on the swordsman who towered over him, looking more like a demon than a man.

Zoro watched as the man let out a terrified whimper and a suffocated squeak of fear, staring up at him wide eyed. Zoro's brow furrowed as he narrowed his eyes, this man looked familiar.

"You are going to tell us, very silently, what exactly is going on here. Understood?" Sanji continued, crouching to get to eyelevel with the man who seemed to be frozen in terror.

He lit himself a cigarette, grabbing the man's chin between his fingers to turn his head to him. "...Understood?"

The man gave a simple nod, eyes darting from Zoro and back as he paled. Zoro was glaring at the man, there was something so familiar about him, but he couldn't put his finger on it.

"I... we... were all caught by the spiders." The man began, voice trembling as much as his hands. "I only got here a few hours ago. Apparently we're digging up old treasure in this temple."

"Treasure?" Sanji's head tilted in confusion, glancing around the chamber. "Why would spiders want treasure?"

The man shook his head, giving Zoro another terrified glance before he continued. "It's for the man who controls the spiders." The man slowly raised his hand, pointing unsteadily down a tunnel over Zoro's shoulder. "His throne room is over there."

"Oi... aren't you-" Zoro began, crouching and grabbing the man by the collar, the man struggled slightly, eyes wide in horror as tears gathered in his eyes.

Zoro growled. "You ARE the bastard who stole the book!" Zoro snarled and the man shrieked in fear, struggling to get out of the swordsman's steel grip.

"I'M SORRY. I'M SORRY. I'M SORRY. I'M SOR-" The man started chanting slipping out of his shirt to escape. The man was pale as a ghost and tearing up in fear as he turned on his heel to run away. Sanji casually put out his foot, tripping the now half naked man so he fell flat on his face in the dirt.

"DON'T KILL ME." The man's scream was muffled by the dirt as Sanji sat down on his back, leaning onto his knees and looking up at Zoro. The man struggled slightly, clawing at dirt in a desperate attempt to escape.

"So what do you say, Marimo?" Sanji smirked, playful look in his one visible eye as he flicked the ashes of his cigarette. "Shall we kill him?" The man looked over his shoulder, looking up at Sanji's sadistic expression and over to Zoro.

Zoro grinned back, watching the man's skin crawl with fear. "Unless he can be of some use to us... I suppose we should." For dramatic effect, he drew his second sword.

"I'LL BE USEFUL! I'LL BE USEFUL!" The man begged, struggling and clasping together his hands as tears streamed down his face. "I'LL BE USEFUL! PLEASE DON'T KILL M-" Sanji's hand came down on the man's face with a comical slap, silencing him.

"If you want to be useful, you can start by being quiet." Sanji hissed, the man nodded under his palm and Sanji got up. "And don't even think about running." Sanji added when the man brushed dirt off his bare chest. Zoro tossed him back his shirt, sheathing both his swords before he crossed his arms over his chest.

"We want to get back to the village. Fast." Zoro stated, taking a step closer to the man who stared at him as if the swordsman had just threatened to eat him. "Take us there. You are the reason we are in this place to begin with."

"B-but it's impossible-" The man began, voice high pitched with fear as he pulled his shirt over his head. "The only way out is through the throne room. You can't go there! It's full of spiders!" the man tried to reason, flailing his arms slightly. "That's why we're all stuck down here!"

"No." Zoro snorted grimacing to the man who took a step behind Sanji out of fear. "You're all stuck here because you lack resolve."

"Don't compare everyone to monsters like you!" The man whined, covering his face in horror as Sanji nudged him in front of them.

He reluctantly led them along the walls, hiding in shadows as they snuck to the far end of the chamber.

The man pointed down the tunnel, resolute expression despite his fear. "This is the path. Follow the tracks and you'll end up in the throne room half an hour or so." He added, voice a little brighter with hope. "This is enough, right? I can't run fast, I'll slow you down. I don't have to go with you, right?"

Zoro didn't even dignify that with an answer, hand resting on his swords as he nodded into the tunnel. The man's shoulders slumped as he started walking, muttering something under his breath.

"Liar. You ran fast enough today after you stole that book." Sanji pointed out testily, causing the man to wince and sigh. The blonde walked up to the man's side, scowling at him through the dark. "Why did you steal it anyways? Don't tell me you thought it was safe to steal something from a guy built like a battleship."

Zoro's brow arched at that, catching up to the cook and thief as he listened to the man's fumbling excuses. A lot of people assumed he moved slowly and clumsily, a large percent of those people also regretted underestimating him when their blood was spraying out of their chest in a morbid fountain.

"I heard him talk about legendary treasure down at the docks, I assumed the book had a treasure map." the man hugged himself to fight of the chill. "I dropped it when the spiders snatched me, they carried me through a tunnel underground, and then I fainted."

"That would explain why there weren't any human remains in those tunnels." Zoro pointed out, Sanji shuddered slightly at the thought.

"I'm not going back into that disgusting, shitty hole." Sanji spat out venomously, stomping out his cigarette. "There better be another way out."

"There is: an old lady back in the mines said she was brought in through a big door somewhere on the other side of the throne room." The thief grimaced slightly. "She is half blind and sickly, though, so the door could be anywhere."

"He uses old ladies to dig up treasure!?" Sanji snapped outraged, shaking a fist at something that wasn't there. "That bastard!" Sanji turned around, pointing at Zoro from such a short distance that the swordsman went cross eyed when Sanji's finger graced the tip of his nose. "Zoro! Let's kick this bastard's ass!"

"That was the plan all along, curly-brow." Zoro grumbled, pushing the blonde's hand out of his face. There was no way they would be able to leave all these people here. That wasn't what the Strawhat crew did.

"You think you can do that?" The thief asked in disbelief, pausing his walking to look at the two pirates. His hands clenched into whitening fists as he stared at them. "You have no reason to help us! Why do you even care?" The thief's voice trembled slightly.

"I... I stole from you! I stole something important! This island is small and has nothing special on it except for trees-" The thief was glaring at them, "the marines haven't bothered investigating, even if people have been disappearing for almost half a year! Why would some stupid pirates want to help!?"

The thief panted, tears in his eyes as his shoulders heaved. Zoro hadn't noticed it before, but now that the man was looking at him with something other than fear, he seemed rather young, probably around Luffy's age.

"I managed to stock up on some very hard to find spices and nice meat." Sanji said casually, lighting himself a cigarette. The cook blew smoke into the air, giving the distraught young man a reassuring smirk.

"The booze here is nice." Zoro mused, cracking his neck with a half-yawn. "You have a lot of nice markets too."

"... we only have one market."

"What?"

"Our captain likes this island's 'great service': sand globes." Sanji interrupted, smiling to the confused swordsman. "If our captain likes this island, it's our job to help out, right?"

"Right." Zoro nodded once. Luffy was the captain after all.

"We don't have a lot of money but you can have the treasure we found if you beat up that Spider-master!"The thief was grinning in anticipation. "I'll go look for that book I stole! I'll get you a new treasure map, I'll get you anything you want!"

"You're being pretty generous for a thief." Sanji pointed out as he tapped the ashes of his cigarette. "Why do you think we'd want your stolen money? We're not going to let you blame us for stealing from this island!"

"No! I- I never steal from the people on this island, only the people who come here to shop!" The thief flailed his arms comically, desperation in his eyes. "I love this island and the people who live here! But I'm no good at fighting, so I can't protect them."

This is my village. I want to protect it. I want to protect everyone. Even if I know I can't.

"You will just do everything you can." Zoro suddenly grinned, patting the fiery young man on the shoulder. "Do your best and leave the rest to us."

The thief was shocked, staring at Zoro with wide, tear-stained dark blue eyes. "Y-yes!" He wiped the tears away, all uncertainty gone as he clenched his trembling fists. "Follow me! We're almost at the throne room!" He started running, determination in each step.

"Oi, Zoro." Sanji huffed, grabbing Zoro's forearm to get his attention as they ran. "What's gotten into you? You were being all weird-"

"It's the same." Zoro grinned, sparing Sanji a glance and a happy smile. "This guy, he keeps saying the same things Usopp did."

"Usopp said things like that?" Sanji frowned in confusion, running up to Zoro's side. "Was this before I joined?"

"Yeah." Zoro grinned, hand resting on his swords to prevent them from clattering. "It's a bit nostalgic really." It seemed so weird that there had been a time when there was only him, Luffy, Nami, Usopp and the Merry Go. Now that he thought about it... there had even been a time before Nami, when it was only him and Luffy.

And before there was Luffy, he was alone.

A sharp pain blossomed through Zoro's chest and a heavy feeling in his lungs almost made him trip. What was this feeling, this cold empty feeling? Was it something he'd also meditated away? Some emotion he'd forgotten what it felt like?

He had felt it before: like his every breath was chilly and his blood was running cold in his veins. A long time ago. When he wandered around as a kid, making up games to take his mind away from how lost he was. When Kuina died. When he'd left the dojo and everything he knew behind to hunt for Mihawk.

He'd completely forgotten how lonely it was. He'd meditated those feelings away soon after he left the dojo. They were unproductive and distracting.

Before Luffy, he'd been lonely. Travelling alone with everyone too scared of him to approach him. Johnny and Yosaku had helped, but they left for their own adventures soon after.

Eating alone. Travelling alone. Seeing new islands and fighting pirates. Alone.

"Zoro?" Sanji's hand on his shoulder startled Zoro from his thoughts. The cook's hand was warm, and he could feel the blonde give him a reassuring squeeze. "You zoned out, you idiot. What is going on in that stupid moss-brain of yours?" Sanji asked as politely as always, slight concern on his face. "You look like you're going to throw up."

"I'm fine." Zoro shook his head. "Just thinking."

"It must be terribly hard for someone as stupid as you." Sanji teased, hand lingering on Zoro's shoulder. "If you throw up that fish I cooked earlier, I'll kill you."

"There it is." The thief pointed, slowing down his running. "The throne room is just through that door down the hallway."

Both pirates caught up with the thief, leaning over to glance through the doorway. The "throne room" had probably been a place of worship a few thousand years ago but now housed nothing but spiders, a pile of bags filled with treasure, and an arrogant looking man sitting on a large, crumbling throne.

"That's the guy who controls the spiders?" Sanji narrowed his eyes at the slightly lanky man who was sorting treasure into two separate sacks. "He's holding some kind of staff."

"He uses that thing to control the spiders." The thief frowned and pressed himself against the wall when a large spider walked past their hiding spot. "I don't know how it works, it might be a weapon too."

"It doesn't matter if it's a weapon or not. I'm going to break it." Sanji crushed his cigarette, grimacing to Zoro. "I'll take care of that asshole, just make sure none of those gross spider bastards gets close to me."

Zoro rolled his eyes, grinning as he placed the Wado between his teeth and drew his two other swords. Zoro liked to make grand entrances, busting through walls or slicing up doors was his idea of proper first impressions. He was here to slice things up after all.

The temple was unstable enough as it was, so Zoro decided that getting straight to the heart of the matter was entrance enough.

After all, he wasn't fighting fellow swordsmen , he was fighting oversized bugs. Those things didn't need to draw their weapons or put up a proper fight.

His blows travelled through the stone floor, slicing deep gashes into stone as the two Strawhats burst into the room. Zoro couldn't shake the feeling that something was missing from the entrance without Luffy's Battle Cry and threats of ass kicking, but they would have to make do with the enemy yelping in terror at the sight of them.

Their enemy didn't look very strong, screaming commands at the spiders and pointing at the approaching duo with his scepter. "GET THEM! HURRY!" The man ran across the room, leaving the treasure behind as the approaching spiders obscured their view.

Zoro could see that the idea of kicking the spiders directly or getting into their reach disgusts and possibly terrifies the blond. It's rather amusing actually, Zoro spared the blond a glance in between his attacks. This might become distracting, he'd have to train this need out of himself during battle.

Sanji had found his own way of dealing with the insects from a distance; breaking or finding large pieces of stone and kicking them into the giant insects like a child would kick a balloon.

Those legs really were something else. Zoro made a mental note of giving them a thorough once over with his fingers the next time he got the blonde's pants off.

The spiders seemed to be completely brainwashed, rushing at them with frantic hissing and spitting their webs at them. The few strings of web that were properly aimed at them and posed any threat were disposed off in mid air, either by a giant boulder kicked by Sanji, or Zoro's flying slashes that split the air and sent the web hurdling back to its owner.

"AAAIIIIEEEEEK!"

Zoro turned around in confusion at that high pitched shriek, looking at the blond who was glaring daggers at him. Sanji's jaw set in disapproval, his eyes narrowed dangerously.

"That WASN'T me, moss brain." Sanji hissed across the throne room, splattering a spider against the wall with a large broken statue. "I. DON'T. Shriek!"

As if to prove the blonde's point, the shriek sounded again, even more urgent and terrified than before.

It was coming from behind them. The thief from before was attempting to lead the group of people out of the temple, carrying an old lady on his back. The reason for the shriek was the couple of spiders that had spotted them.

"I'LL TAKE CARE OF IT." Zoro ran off, knowing that he cook could take care of himself for the minute or two it would take to slice up those spiders and get the people to safety.

Sanji didn't object, his face determined and nose wrinkled in disgust as a leg ripped off a spider and it's vile juices splattered over his shoe.

One slash and the spider further away from the group was out of the picture, twitching in pain on the floor like a broken puppet. Zoro had to get closer to take out the one almost upon the group, he didn't want to risk killing any of the people they were trying to save. Needed one good flying slice and those people were safe.

"OI, ZORO! LOOK OUT!"

The moment Zoro released his attack, sticky web caught his forearm and yanked him backwards, throwing off his aim so his attack sliced off three of the spider's front legs and went crashing through the wall. The spider rolled over, gushing it's vile, slimy bodily fluids over itself as it flailed its stubs. The people kept running, carrying their elders and injured as they headed for a hallway Zoro supposed was the exit.

The swordsman cursed under his breath, his arm was almost completely covered in the web, the sticky strands pulling painfully at his skin and body hair. The other end of the web was stuck to a large and important looking pillar reaching all the way up to the ceiling.

He started running along the web, sword raised as he aimed for the pillar. If he'd be able to slice off the part of the pillar hosting the web he might be able to leave it standing for a while longer. He could hear Sanji cursing from the center of the hall, loud and frantically in synch with the crushing of the floor.

The cook was surrounded, spiders creeping up behind him while the blond was trying to keep his distance to the ones spewing their web at him. He couldn't afford to stop running, but he

"COOK!" Zoro snapped, raising his free arm and sending a slash towards the blond.

Sanji knew the sound of Zoro's sword attacks by heart, just like Zoro could hear the pattern of Sanji's kicks before he completed them. Just like Zoro had assumed, the blond jumped into the air, his slash flying under his nimble feet and sweeping the floor of spiders for the moment.

As a team, there wasn't a lot that could withstand them. No one knew this better than Zoro and Sanji themselves, except maybe Luffy. It was almost like the captain knew before they themselves did. Luffy was strange like that.

Before Zoro managed to reach the pillar, something caught his leg, almost tripping him before he regained his balance. It was spider web, a large white glob of spider web sticking to his knee and floor in a big messy pile of glue like strands. Even if he cut the floor under his foot, he wouldn't be able to run properly with a stone slab dangling from his knee.

He could just cut his pants off. Just above the knee might do the trick. Zoro leveled Kitetsu along his knee, feeling it's curse hum through the blade dangerously. It was craving his blood, howling for his life. He'd have to be careful, a single slip and he'd either loose his leg or get his sword tangled in the web.

Just when Zoro was thinking about trading Kitetsu out for Wado just to be sure he wouldn't cut off his leg, a frustrated yelp from the cook caught his attention. His blood ran cold at the sight, while he was unable to watch Sanji's back, one of the spiders had managed to get within melee range.

The cook's shirt tore open at the chest, sharp claw barely breaking skin as the cook jumped backwards. Zoro instinctively struggled, feeling the spider web pull at his skin as he tried to pull himself free to assist the blond.

The book tumbled from Sanji's shirt and hit the ground with a thud of dust, sliding away from Sanji on the broken dusty ground.

"COOK! THE BOOK!" Zoro yelled out, watching in horror as spider legs barely brushed against the fragile pages and sent the book tumbling down the incline and towards a large crack in the floor.

Sanji's head snapped up at Zoro's voice, patting himself down for a second before looking down at the journal on the ground. One anti-manner-kick-course later, the spider was flying over the blonde's head and Sanji was lunging for the book.

Before the cook managed to scoop up the book, the enemy fingers caught it by the spine. The man controlling the spiders yanked it away from Sanji's grip and stared at the blond with determined possessiveness. "This does not belong to you!"

Sanji's jaw slacked in outrage, fury on his face when the man made a run for the exit with the book in his arms. Anger dripped from Sanji's tone as he started following the man, each step more demonically heavy than the first.

"GIVE IT BACK."

Zoro knew the blond would never approve of him using 'shrieked' to describe the utterly livid howl that erupted from the cook's throat. The cook sent the spiders attempting to get at him flying, twirling in place until his foot was glowing red hot and burning with fury.

"DIABLE-JAMBLE!"

Sanji's foot came down on the floor like a sledge, cracking up the surface in a fiery burst as the blond kicked up boulders and sent them flying in the direction of the unlucky man. The spiders flocked around him like a living hairy shield, taking the blows and shrieking painfully as they flew across the temple.

"Seal it! SEAL the EXIT!" The man yelled, waving his scepter along the tunnel opening. Spiders flocked towards him, spitting thick stings of web across the doorframe and over the walls. Sealing the exit in a thick sheet of web. It would be precision work to cut around the web and there was no time for precision.

"ZORO! DO SOMETHING. I'M GETTING SWARMED HERE." Sanji hissed, boulders flying across the temple, holding off the spiders but not doing enough damage to crush them. They were growing in numbers, crawling down the wall and surrounding the cook.

"I'M STUCK!" Zoro shouted back, the entire temple seemed to shake from their voices. His attack on the wall earlier had probably broken a main support pillar. The entire thing was coming apart. He had to get free of the spider web, he couldn't watch Sanji's back properly like this.

"O-OI! Don't give me that crap! Can't you get free somehow!?" The cook jumped out of reach of an approaching spider, his expression more distressed than before. The spider was hissing at him, getting closer by the second. "So gross! Get away from me!" Sanji kicked a large boulder at the arachnid, sending it flying into the other end of the room with all its hairy legs flailing wildly.

"I'M WORKING ON IT!" Zoro snapped impatiently, with both a his left leg and right arm stuck, he wasn't going to be much help while he was stuck outside of melee range.

Zoro cursed under his breath as he considered his options.

The spider web was too elastic to cut; it gave in to all of his blows and made his swords stick to it. It might be strong as steel but that wasn't the issue; he knew how to cut steel. Flexible sticky steel was not the same thing.

Zoro brought down Kitetsu, cursing the loss of his favorite pants as he cut the fabric around the knee. Those pants had survived almost THREE islands now, he'd just gotten comfortable.

Luckily his boots weren't too covered, he was VERY fond of his boots, it was hard to get comfortable boots on the Grand Line. A small slice of fabric and his leg was free. His arm was still tangled and the web was pulling at his skin. Sanji was rapidly running out of boulders; Zoro didn't have much time until the cook freaked out.

He couldn't cut the web and Chopper would kill him if he cut off his arm. It would also set him back a few years of training and Shusui would still be tangled. Zoro grimaced, looking at the large pillar the other end of the web was stuck to. Robin was going to kill him for this.

Two slashes and the part of the pillar Zoro was tied to was loose. The entire temple trembled as Zoro wrapped the spider web around his arm, yanking the stone slab out of its slot. A loud rumbling creak shook the temple when the top part of the pillar started sinking, taking the roof with it.

Zoro started running, the large stone slab dragging on the floor behind him and twirling up dust as it scraped up the floor.

"COOK! MOVE OUT OF THE WAY!" Zoro called out, heading for the large cluster of spiders. If he timed the attack right, he might be able to take out the majority in a single attack. He waited until he noticed Sanji jumping out of range and Zoro crossed his blades in preparation. "ONI GIRI!"

The weight of the stone slab off set Zoro's aim slightly, and roughly half the spiders hissed in pain and flew to the back of the throne room. The walls trembled at the impact and Zoro cursed under his breath. There wasn't much time, the perpetrator and the book were gone and they were still sealed inside this crumbling deathtrap.

"We don't have much time!" Sanji shouted running to the block of stone stuck to Zoro's arm. "Do we have any oil left?!" A loud slam of Sanji's heel shattered the stone and Zoro pulled the last of the spider web out of the way so it wouldn´t get stuck to any more rubble.

He patted down his pockets, fishing up the bottle of oil that had been so useful on this adventure. There was barely anything left, a small splash at the bottom, barely enough to coat a single sword. He tossed the bottle to Sanji, who cursed when he saw the amount. It wasn't going to be enough.

"Shit, it's not enough, we shouldn't have used it earlier-" Sanji began, running a distressed hand through his hair. Zoro grimaced at that, there was no way he was going to allow the cook to regret what they had done.

"No time for standing around!" Zoro grabbed onto Sanji's arm, pointing towards the cocoon. "We'll use the rest of the oil and cut a hole in the web!" They started running, Sanji kicked off debris falling from the ceiling and Zoro sent slashes through the air to block stands of web aimed for their legs.

The top half of the stone pillar Zoro had slashed collapsed into their path, disrupting Zoro's attention for long enough for a string of web to get past his guard. Zoro braced himself for the sticky web hitting his side, but instead felt the burning sting of Sanji's Diable-Jamble through his Haramaki.

Sanji had kicked him out of the way at the last second, sending him flying a few feet across the room. Zoro scrambled to his feet, his swords scraping against the stone as he clutched his charred side.

"COOK!"

Sanji's blazing leg struck the web and Zoro expected the blond to fall over at least, yet the cook seemed to bounce of the web, bending it but not sticking to it. The dust twirled around Sanji's feet as he landed, staring up at Zoro in shock; the web didn't stick to his leg. Sanji gave the web a curious poke with his toe, retracting it cleanly.

"IT'S THE HEAT!" Both men yelled in unison, realizing at the same time that the game was won. Both flashed the other a grin as they ran towards each other.

Zoro yanked the bottle of oil from his pocket and splashed it over as much of his swords as he could before he crossed them. Sanji's burning leg left a scorch mark in the dusty floor as the cook jumped into the air and extended his leg towards Zoro's swords.

Sanji's leg hit Zoro's crossed blades with a loud scrape, heating the oiled and metal in a familiar block that made both men grin madly. "Slice that web open!" Sanji grinned as he did a flip over the swordsman, the heat in his leg dispatching as he ran towards the bags of treasure.

A single burning slash of Zoro's swords split the web like a sheet. Katana really weren't too bad when they were on fire.

"Zoro, we need to go." Sanji hefted a large bag of treasure over his shoulder, kicking another one over to Zoro before he ran towards him. "COME ON! Thanks to YOU this place isn't going to be standing much longer." Sanji urged, pulling on Zoro's shoulder and pointing to the newly opened entrance. "This way, moss-brain."

"I'm not going to get lost!" Zoro grumbled as he sheathed Wado and Kitetsu.

Shusui was still tangled to Zoro's hand. Sanji started running, leading the way down the crumbling hall as Zoro shouldered the loot and followed his shipmate.

The cracks on the floor fanned out at their heels like they were running on thin ice, destruction spreading up the walls and onto the ceiling. The hallway started collapsing, large rocks crushing the floor behind Zoro. Hisses of trapped spiders echoed down the hall as the entire throne room collapsed in on itself, causing a tidal wave of dust and stale air to flood the hallway.

"I SEE THE EXIT!" Sanji yelled out excitedly, picking up speed at the prospect of fresh air and solid ground. The dust blurred their vision and threatened to fill their lungs completely as the rumble of destruction caught up with them.

The entrance collapsed the moment the two Strawhats threw themselves outside, hitting the moist ground with a thump and clatter of treasure. They both sprawled out onto the soft soil, trying to catch their breath before the other as they let the adrenaline seep from their system.

Some of the people they had saved walked towards them hesitantly, surrounding them in a circle of dirty and concerned faces. Two of the held their former captor by the upper arms, holding him securely in place with scowls on their faces.

"We caught this bastard when he ran out of the temple." One of the men said and forced the culprit down on his knees in front of the pirates.

Zoro was still panting as he sat up, glaring at the man that struggled weakly in the other's grasp.

"He had your book-" The thief from before, the one that had stolen the journal before stepped forward, holding it safely in his arms. Sanji's eyes lit up when he saw it, and the blonde's breathing relaxed considerately.

"That is NOT theirs! It's my father's!" The man snarled, attempting to standing up as he glared at the thief. "Those stupid books were his treasure! He would never give them away!"

"That old man gave that book to me," Zoro growled threateningly, raising the tangled Shusui and pointing it at the man's face, "when he left this island."

That struck the man pale, eyes wide at the pirate duo as his mouth went slack. "YOU LIE!" The man screamed, lips brushing against Zoro's blade and cutting a small incision. "Why would he leave?! I got all this treasure so he could live happily!"

"He said he moved to another island to be with his family." Zoro snarled, some of the other people in the crowd mumbled something, some claiming to have helped the old man pack his possessions. The perpetrator paled as he glanced from one face to another, seeing and hearing the truth from every face.

"I just... wanted to give my old man all the treasure he could ever want..." The man mumbled to himself in disbelief, staring at the ground with unseeing eyes. He wasn't even attempting to put up a fight anymore.

"Naturally, treasure doesn't make you happy if you are alone" Sanji huffed from behind them, lighting himself a cigarette as the thief passed him the book.

Zoro watched the blond run his long fingers along the battered cover lovingly. It had all been worth it.

"How can we ever repay you?" A man with a relatively impressive mustache asked as he stepped up to Zoro, eyes wide with respect. "You two saved all of our lives and stopped this madman from taking over our island. You're heroes!" Sanji stood up, flashing Zoro a teasing smile as he tucked the book inside his torn shirt.

"We're not heroes!" Zoro grumbled as he stood up, looking over the group with a sour expression. Some of the people took a step backwards, fear evident on their dirty and tired faces. "We're pirates and we got what we came for." Zoro added, shouldering the sack of treasure. He couldn't leave this behind Nami would probably scream his ears off.

"Just taking us back to the village is thanks enough."The cook said as he blew smoke into the cold night air, grin still lingering on his face as he eyed Zoro. "I have a crew to feed."

* * *

**Epilouge.**

After breakfast and a quick explanation of what had happened in the forest, Luffy gave a slow meaningful nod. His hands slammed against the table, rattling dishes as the captain pointed at both Zoro and Sanji with an angry expression.

"How could you have an adventure without us!?" The captain sulked, nostrils flaring as he sat down with a pout. "Zoro! You meanie!"

"Luffy-" Usopp tried to rationalize, patting the rubber-man on the shoulder. "They just got lost! Zoro gets lost all the time right?"

"OI!" Zoro grumbled, reaching out to grab Usopp's shirt in retaliation.

The sharpshooter slinked out of reach, poking Luffy in the face. The captain made a low, uncertain noise at the back of his throat, humming as he frowned at Sanji and Zoro from across the table.

"Yes, Luffy! It doesn't matter! You wanted to get going to the next island as soon as possible, right?~" Nami sang from the other end of the room, where she was practically rolling around in the treasure they had retrieved. "Zoro and Sanji-kun brought back loads of treasure, so who cares if they killed some bugs? Franky, let's set off for the next island while the wind is favorable!"

No response apart from the same uncertain humm from the back of Luffy's throat.

"I think that sounds like a SUPER idea!" Franky began, standing up from his seat and patting Sanji's shoulder before he left "A man who just wanted to give his father treasure, not realizing he himself was the treasure! Oh! The story of a man's dream! Such SADNESS!"

"Apparently he'll get exiled to the same island that old book geezer lives now; so it's not a bad ending." Zoro pointed out, only to be interrupted by Chopper's little hooves thrusting a stick down his throat.

"No one got injured, so I don't care!" Chopper said as he withdrew the stick with a thoughtful 'hum' and closed his first aid kit. Apparently satisfied, the doctor gave Zoro's web-free and slightly bruised arm a reassuring pat with his little hoof. "Zoro is even less injured than usual! I don't have to use any bandages!"

Both Zoro and Sanji awaited Luffy's decision, the captain's expression was both deep in thought and slightly in pain.

Hopefully Luffy would make up his mind before his brain melted out of his ears. The Sunny's anchor splashed against the surface as it rose and the walls creaked to life as Franky prepared to set off.

"Captain-san, I have an idea," Robin said softly from the back of the kitchen, sipping the coffee she was drinking while she read Captain Belon's journal.

Both Zoro and Sanji winced slightly when the archaeologist spoke. She had not been happy to hear of the near destruction of the temple, but lending her the book to study had seemed to somewhat soothe her anger.

Taking into account Robin's morbid sense of humor: neither of the vandals were excited to hear what she had to say about their punishment.

"If they should be punished, I think it would be fitting that at the next island the guard duty is theirs. How does that sound?"

There was a playful look in Robin's eyes as she looked directly at Zoro. Did she know what happened? Neither him nor the cook had mentioned the... change... in their relationship, so why were Robin's lips slowly easing into a knowing smile?

"I have decided!" Luffy jumped from his seat, his expression comically strict as he unceremoniously pointed from Zoro to Sanji. "You two are going to be on guard duty on the next island! Even if it's REALLY interesting! Okay?"

Zoro and Sanji were about to agree to their "punishment" of spending time alone together when the door to the kitchen flew open. Luffy's strict expression instantly vanished when Brook's giant-afro appeared in the doorway.

"Ah, everyone?" Brook sang cheerfully, pointing outside with a bony finger. "Someone is calling us from the docks. It seems to be important."

Everyone besides Robin headed for the door, Luffy practically bursting out of the kitchen and throwing himself halfway overboard to take a look at the mysterious caller. The thief from before was running along the dock, waving at them and carrying a large, heavy looking bag.

"Hey! Cook-san! Zoro-san! I'm sorry I caused you trouble!" The man was waving, a large smile on his face. "This is for your captain! Thank you for everything!" The man raised the bag over his head with great difficulty, its contents clinking brightly.

"Is it more treasure!?" Nami cheered with a large smile on her face, clapping her hands in delight. "Luffy! Get that bag on board! Hurry!"

Luffy's stretchy hand caught the bag as the thief screamed out in shock and fell over. Luffy's arm withdrew across the surface of the water and safely into Luffy's arms with a clatter. Without as much as a second's hesitation Nami yanked the bag open in Luffy's arms.

"D-don't tell me..." Nami's voice was trembling in disappointment when dozens of clear glass orbs fell out of the overflowing bag. Nami's pleased expression melted away as Luffy's eyes grew wide with childish glee.

"Oh! It's special service sand globes! So many of them!" Luffy yelled out excitedly, ripping various spheres out of the bag and shaking them excitedly. Usopp and Chopper disappeared half way into the bag as they claimed some of them as their own.

Zoro made his way to his favorite tree, reclining back in the grass of the Sunny, enjoying the newly risen sun on his face and listening to the life around him. He pretended to be asleep, enjoying the sound of the crew around him as he settled into what would become one of those quiet days on the Sunny. The kind where the crew sat around and all did their own thing.

"Oi, moss brain." Sanji kicked the bottom of Zoro's foot, the swordsman cracked an eye open, peering through the sun at the handsome blond grinning down at him.

"What do you want crap cook?" Zoro arched a brow, unable to hold back a smirk of his own when he saw the mischief in Sanji's expression.

"Since my suit is already ruined-" Sanji nudged Zoro's foot challengingly with his toes, his voice slightly louder than it had to be for Zoro alone to hear him. "Wanna wrestle?"

"LET'S WRESTLE!" Luffy suddenly screamed out of nowhere as he sprung from the bag of sand-globes like a jack-in-the-box. The fragile spheres flew into the air in a shockwave, leaving Usopp and Chopper flailing in an attempt to catch them.

Zoro grinned. Lazy days on the Sunny were never going to be the same.

**Adventure End.**

* * *

PHEW. Strange that this part of my life is over. Despite the delay between finishing this and actually posting it, I haven't been slacking off. no sir! Got another concrete monster coming up soon enough.

**yep**.

What am I getting myself into?

This '_longer chapters less frequent update_' thing didn't work out as well as I hoped. Sticking to shorter chapters with greater frequency from now on!

Well, now I know. Experimentation is a key part of getting better after all. Tell me what you think!

Sorry for the wait here, thanks go to **A3shFaerie** for being the beta for this; even when life got hectic and swamped!

Hope to see you on our next adventure!

-BBB


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